Twist of Prophecy
by Kentethalion
Summary: The prophecy has been laid, and now the exorcists must face it, no matter what the outcome. possible spoilers up to chapter 132. epilouge up!
1. News

**Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to D.Gray Man or any characters related to said Anime/Manga**

* * *

News

As he walked through the hallways of the great tower, the young white-haired exorcist boy pondered the Black Religious Organizations current situation. It did not look good. His eyes closed as he continued to think, the left one had a vicious scar over it that started with a pentacle above his eye, then cut back towards his ear under his eye and then continued back towards his neck. Before the cut back, the scar was crossed by another, smaller, one straight across it. Exorcists recently had been dropping like flies, killed brutally by the Noah and Akuma. Allen Walker had been going on non-stop missions. Ones that involved landing in an already heavily infested area of the world, and fighting day and night against the Akuma.

Allen was quickly ripped from his reveries as he hit something solid and rebounded, crashing to the floor.

"Ow," a distinctly feminine voice spoke out. Allen looked up into the face of one of his close friends and exorcist partners.

"Sorry, Miranda," he apologized.

"No matter, Allen-kun, I was just looking for you anyways." She stood up, her drawn face looking slightly worried, and offered him a hand. He took it and pulled himself up. "It appears as though we will be receiving yet another mission together, Allen-kun."

A long-winded sigh escaped from Allen as they began walking toward the Head Director's office. "Another one? You think Komui would start to use some other exorcists."

"He is. This isn't going to be just you, some finders, and me as always. Komui has discovered a _huge_ possibility of powerful Innocence. It is very possible that more than one are residing in this place." By now, they had reached the door to the office, and Miranda knocked lightly.

"Come iiiinnnnnn," a rather carefree sounding voice called.

"So, Miranda, who else will be coming with us?"

"Oh, a few people I think you might know…" her voice trailed off as they entered the brightly lit office. Allen covered his eyes to give them time to adjust. When they had, he looked around the office at the people giving him smiles and glares.

"Wait? You're all coming with us?" he asked incredulously.

"Heck yes, what else did you expect?" his red-haired, laid back friend, Lavi, claimed as he slapped him on the back. "We can't let big, bad Allen have all the fun now can we?" He winked with is left eye, the one not covered up by a black eye-patch.

"Indeed Allen, and during this mission, you might require our assistance." The voice came from a tall man standing close to the door. His upright posture and the white streak of hair instantly let Allen know who he was.

"Oi, are you always so formal Krory?"

"Yes, Lavi, I prefer not to make an ass of myself in public."

"So you do that on your own time?" Lavi joked. Krory merely turned his back on him. Allen inspected the other two members of the party. Linali, long hair thrown back over one shoulder and in full battle attire, Dark Boots as well, gave him a beaming smile, one full of confidence and trust. Allen blushed fiercely, as he always did with Linali, and turned to looked at the last exorcist scowling in the far corner. His long, black hair flowed around him. His stern frown let all in the room know that the brightly pleasant atmosphere was something he regretted sharing space with.

"Kanda, too? Must be one heck of a mission to drudge up the sour-faced one as well, huh?" Allen commented nonchalantly.

"Che, I am only here to make sure you don't fuck up, Beansprout," his reply came cold and harsh.

"Alright, everyone, calm down. Otherwise we are never gonna get through this briefing and the Earl and his buddies will get that Innocence while we stand here bickering. Tim!" Every head turned to the door as a golden golem swooped into the room, sparkling and throwing light everywhere. The golem, basically a ball with wings and a long tail that ended in a type of puff, was self-aware and once belonged to Allen's master, General Marian Cross. Though Allen had later discovered that before it had belonged to his master, Timcanpy was under the ownership of the musician of the old ark. The Earl and Noah's had constructed a new one, forcing Allen to save everyone by playing the musical score provided by Timcanpy. That day still seemed like a vague memory. Just how he had managed to learn piano well enough to save everyone lives, he had no clue. All he knew is that after that incident, the musician had disappeared, leaving Tim to Allen. It had been three long months since that incident, and may things had occurred during that time, many good, but many bad as well.

Now, Tim alighted on Komui's cluttered table and instantly began showing images of a small town tucked away in the mountains. Though the houses had no apparent outward grandeur, the place still held an air of majesty. Small, plain houses livened up by beautiful gardens. Trees spread their silk soft petals through the air as the wind whistled a soothing tune. All were drawn into the pictures, memorized. When Timcanpy suddenly stopped showing the images, everyone blinked and realized where they were and what they were doing.

"What was that place?" Allen asked.

"That place is a small village in the Himalayans, known as Rädgur," Komui explained. "Recently, our finders have encountered some of the citizens, who appeared to be in a daze. When our finders asked them where they came from and what was wrong, they only replied with whimpering and screams.

Komui picked up a report file and began to read form it. Allen was surprised he could even find it among the mess that was supposed to be his desk. He read in a flat, monotone voice, "Demons, Demons I tell you! People, they disappear, they don't come back! Don't come back I tell you! Listen to me! Don't come back! Evil spirits that shoot people, and those people turn to dust, claimed they are looking for something. They tortured us, not caring about pain or misery. They burned my daughter alive! Alive….all over innocence, HOW IS THAT INNOCENT!!?!?!?"

Komui looked up, "Clearly these people had fled from their village after losing their minds to invading Akuma. Innocence was clearly mentioned, and to draw more than one Akuma to it, it must be strong. That's is why we are sending all of you, because multiple Akuma have already been reported and we suspect that more are on their way. We are counting on you guys for this, you leave in five hours. Go and prepare. Do not let us down. Dismissed, exorcists!"

Everyone stood straight, "Sir!"


	2. Getting Ready

Getting Ready

Allen lay sprawled out on his mattress. He sighed and glanced over at the electric alarm clock sitting on the table beside his bed. _Fifteen minutes till departure._ _Guess I should get going and meet them._ Allen rolled over and slid off his bed. He crouched down and put on his boots, strapping them securely. He picked up a large bag and slung it over his shoulder. In it was everything he would need for this trip. Clothes, sleeping bag, and various other small necessities, like a small first aid kit. On his way out of the room, Allen grabbed his black exorcist jacket from the rack beside the door. The silver accoutrements that covered it glinted in the fading evening light.

Allen stepped out into the hall, closed the door behind him, and locked it. He sighed again as he set off down the hallway. As he strolled, he slipped on his jacket as his mind was brought back to the things that had just been running through his mind a little while ago. Another dream. _Dammit. I can only hope and pray that they are just that, dreams. Because if they are premonitions…_. Allen shook his head to clear it. _Now is not the time to be thinking about such things, its time for a mission. I need to focus or we could all get killed._

Still, the dreams combined with what Komui had told him after the meeting troubled him. His mind drifted back to the encounter.

Everyone had turned around and was preparing to leave, when suddenly Komui called on Allen.

* * *

"Allen, if you could, stay for a bit, I want to discuss something with you." Linali had shot him a troubled glance while everybody else stepped from the room without so much as even looking back. They all knew about Allen's 'prophecy'. Who were they to interfere with any conversation that might quite possibly be in reference to? Once the door was shut and Komui was sure that everyone was out of earshot, he turned to Allen.

"This isn't going to be a normal mission, Allen." The seriousness in Komui's voice surprised Allen. "Since the Innocence is likely multiple accounts, and very strong, we surmise that at least one Noah is going to show up, though you should be prepared for more. As far as intelligence tells us, Rhode and Tyki are still alive, though Tyki is now a raving monster, as you have already discovered." Allen nodded while shuddering at the memory of the overly powerful creature that even his evil-purging sword could not defeat. "This you can share with everyone, I want them to be prepared. Now, another thing Allen. Something on a slightly more personal level." Allen eyes widened. While the director could be carefree and appear to be idiotic much of the time, he was normally very serious when it came to business. More often then not, he managed to separate his job and his life. "I want you, with your life, Allen, to protect Linali." Allen's face turned a deep shade of crimson and he coughed a couple of times. "Though I probably don't have to tell you that do I?" Allen looked up at him with questioning eyes. "You think I haven't noticed? The way you look at her. The way you talk with her. The way you get fidgety and flustered around her. Even is you yourself haven't come to a conclusion about why these things occur, I have." His eyes glinted evilly behind his glasses.

Allen began once again to question whether the Director was being perfectly straightforward with him or not. Either way, as Allen pondered it, he discovered that Komui was right. He didn't need to be told to protect Linali. He had long ago began doing that on instinct. He hated to see her in pain. It ripped his heart apart when she was, especially when it was because of him.

"So anyway, Allen, do not let me down. The reason I asked you to do this was because Linali has been troubled recently. She has told me about dreams that she has been having; dreams that involve death and pain on an otherworldly level. I am afraid that this could be an omen." Allen stared ahead, barely registering the last sentence. _She's been having the same dreams as me! What does that mean? Could it be that they will come true?_

"Allen." For about the second time that day, Komui brought Allen crashing brutally back into reality. "Protect her, even if it costs you your life. I know this sounds selfish and unreasonable. But I have a strong suspicion that her Innocence may be the 'Heart.' Don't give me that surprised look, I know that you were suspecting the same thing. I mean, both of your Innocences protected you, but it was the fashion in which hers protected hers. Plus, the true form or your Innocence has already been revealed. We both know yours isn't the Heart." Allen nodded. These facts were things that he had long since figured out.

"Once again, Allen," Komui told him sternly, "we're counting on you, don't fail this organization. Don't fail me. And most importantly, don't fail_ her._"

Allen once again straightened up, "Sir!"

"Dismissed."

* * *

As Allen exited the Dark Church, he was struck sideways by a gigantic light.

"Dammit!" he cursed aloud. Lavi trotted over.

"Something wrong, Allen?" His question was joking.

"Yeah, what the heck is with the light?"

"You haven't heard about the new sun-simulator the science department installed?" Allen shook his head.

"Where have you been, under a rock?"

"Almost."

"Lavi," Linali's sweet voice floated over to them from the tower entrance, "how about you stop tormenting Allen-kun and just tell him about it?" Allen turned around and gave Linali a smile of gratification. She beamed back, and the sunlight made her appear as though she was divinely lit from the heavens. The silver on her uniform appeared to dance, giving Allen the impression of a beautifully broken prism of light. He realized he was staring. He shook his head, hard, and turned back to Lavi.

"S-So yeah, how about you explain this thing to me?" he stuttered out. He just couldn't get over how she looked. For his part, Lavi just raised a knowing eyebrow and continued,

"A few weeks ago, the science department completed their new invention, the Sun Simulator 2000. It was a device that could create the feeling of a sun over the tower. They installed it yesterday, but everyone has been discussing it the whole week. Surprised you didn't hear about it, bud."

"Yeah, well, I've had other stuff on my mind." Allen stole a quick glance up a Linali, who was now in merry conversation with Krory and Miranda, whose brown hair was flowing in the wind, both of who has just exited the tower. _We've been have been having the same dreams, eh? Perhaps I should discuss it with her._

"Hey, Allen," Lavi's voice sounded in his ear, "you know, if you're gonna ogle Linali, you should at least try to hide it a little.

"Wha-What are you talking about Lavi?!" Allen yelped.

"Its written all over you face, mate. You really like her don't ya?"

"Damn you Lavi, you are getting the wrong image here."

"And what image would that be, Beansprout?" A chill seemed to settle over the field as Kanda emerged from the front doors.

"Hah, nothing, Kanda, nothing…" Kanda's eyebrows lifted at Allen's hurried answer, devoid of insult.

"Anyways," Allen cleared his throat, "Everyone, I have new information." The other five members of his group gathered round, Kanda hung back slightly, not wanting to get too involved with everyone. "Komui has informed me that there is a high chance we will be fighting a Noah at some point during this mission." Everyone just nodded. _Of course they would, they are all smart enough to put two and two together._ "In other words, we have to be careful everywhere, even during transport, though our finders will help us there. Suspect everyone, and trust no one. If we get split up, do not even trust the other of this group if you see them. To confirm who they are, ask them a question only they would know."

"Everyone can just ask Kanda's first name," Lavi joked. Kanda glared daggers at Lavi, whose smile quickly faded as he turned back into the circle.

"Again, just be careful. I don't know about you guys, but I don't want to lose_anyone_ during this mission."

"Count on us, Allen-kun," Linali cheerfully stated. Allen gave one of his signature smiles, one of the ones that everyone within the Black Religious Organization knew by heart.

"Alright then, lets move out!"


	3. A Revealing Train Ride

A Revealing Train Ride

Three months. A lot can happen in three months. Scars can heal. Lives can be lost. New life can be born. Relationships can start. Hearts can be ripped apart. One can find his peace. The flame of self-doubt can begin. All in three months.

* * *

Allen found himself drifting in between sleep and wakefulness. The train hit a small run of rough rails, bringing him fully into the unsleeping world. He blinked groggily. _Three months._ The thought pin-balled around in his head. He mused over it. It had been three months since that incident. The incident in which he thought he lost almost all of his friends. He visibly shuddered. 

But so much had happened for the better since then. Lavi, Kanda, and most importantly, Linali, had regained their Innocence. It had taken them a while and they still had yet to fully re-master use of their equipment type Innocences. Well, at least Linali had anyway. This was mostly due to her legs. Her muscles were still suffering from the damage the final form of her Dark Boots had inflicted on them. She could once again fly through the air with much more grace than Allen or anyone in the group could hope to accomplish in anything.

Lavi and Kanda were different cases however. Both had reformed their Innocence within a month. Linali had taken almost two. Kanda had revealed absolutely no evidence to show that he had either lost or acquired skill since Mugen's destruction while fighting Skin Boric, a Noah. Lavi, on the other hand, had been perfectly open with his training. Allen remembered asking him about it one time.

* * *

"Hey Lavi!" 

"Allen! What's up with you, looks like you just got thrown through the grinder?"

"Yeah, mission, a couple level 3's."

"Ooh, sounds like fun, sorry I couldn't join." Lavi rolled his eyes. "You know, Innocence training and everything." He accented this comment by looping his finger around in the air, making a half-assed 'whoopee' sign.

"By the way, how's that coming? The recovery training that is."

"I have made absolutely no progress at all." Allen's face fell at this comment. _He's made _no progress _at all?! _

"Why are you giving me that dumb smile? This can't be good. If you can't re-master you're Innocence then…then…"

"Calm down, Allen. I said I hadn't made any progress in the _recovery_ training." Allen gave him a clueless look. Then it dawned on him. His face broke into a smile as he stated,

"If it isn't broken-"

"Don't fix it," Lavi finished for him. "It turns out that the month in which I didn't have my Innocence, I didn't lose one grain of my former skill. Once Gramps realized this, he decided to start training me with _new_ things. In on that training, I have made _much_progress." He chuckled pleasantly. "Next time we fight a Noah, I'll do more than just get caught in their traps."

* * *

The flashback ended, leaving Allen confused about where he was. As the train rattled again, Allen realized where he was. He shook his head to clear it. He needed to start thinking over his strategies against the Noah. _If it is Tyki, then maybe I cou-._ Allen's thought died as he glanced down at his arm. Linali was there, sleeping lightly, head gently rested on his broad shoulder. Blood instantly shot to his face. His thoughts went ballistic. _Lin-Linali's leaning against me! No, not just leaning, she's_sleeping _on me._ If it was possible, even more blood surged to his face, his blush was now the deepest shade of crimson. Allen glanced down at Linali. As he watched, she shifted and murmured something in her sleep. A few rebellious strands of her hair, her long, beautiful hair, fell over her face, accenting her pretty features. As Allen viewed her, he felt his embarrassment ebbing away; somehow, someway, this felt right to him. He glanced over to the end of his bench, where Lavi slept, snoring lightly. 

He took a good look around the rest of the car. Miranda was leaning up against the window, across from him, sleeping deeply. Next to her slouched Krory, who obviously, while awake took care to be proper, lost most of his posture when he slept. The last person in the car, the black-haired Kanda, sat wide-awake. More disconcerting than seeing him awake, Allen realized that he was staring at him with his dark, penetrating eyes. Kanda kept scrutinizing him. Allen began to fidget; wondering what he could want with a gaze that powerful. Allen's forced himself to look away from those deep eyes and returned to looking out the window. His mind began to drift again. _My dreams. What could they mean? _Suddenly, the silence of the car was broken by a harsh voice,

"You are going to have to tell her at some point, Beansprout." Allen's head snapped around in surprise. Allen probably would've been less surprised if he heard Kanda say 'I love you' to someone. Then what he had said sunk in.

"Excuse me?" Allen incredulously. _He shouldn't know anything about that, it's only between Hevlaska and I._

"Che. You heard me. You _will_ have to tell her at some point. When, where, and how is up to you.

"You shouldn't know about this. How in the hell did you find out? No one besides Hevlaska and I know." His voice was quiet, not scolding, just curious.

"How you act around everyone. The hidden sighs behind the smiles. I see them, Beansprout. Even if everyone else is thrown off because of your cheery outlook, which I am not saying is a front, I won't be blindly led astray. The conclusion I came to had to be the correct one, because it is the only one that makes sense."

Allen sighed heavily, "Do you think the others know?"

"Miranda and Krory, I am almost certain about. I noticed that an air of worriness is hanging about them ever since they discovered that a Noah could show up, because that could mean the _he_ could make his way there. Lavi over there, though somewhat dim-witted at times, probably knows, just because he is a Bookman. Bookmen tend to put the pieces together quite fast."

"I am guessing that is probably the closest thing to a compliment I am ever gonna get from you, isn't it, Yu?" a new voice broke out over the cabin. Allen spine stiffened.

"So you did know, eh Lavi?"

"For awhile now, I was gonna wait for you to tell me on your own time before I revealed that fact, but Yu here obviously ruined that plan," he said as he stretched and sat up. Kanda, by the second use of his first name, was glaring at him and grinding his teeth, small veins could almost be seen popping out of his head.

"So assuming that Miranda and Krory know," Allen continued in a weary-sounding voice, "Then that leaves…" He indicated the cute girl sleeping against him.

"As I said before, Beansprout, _you are going to have to tell her sometime._"


	4. Train Station Brawl

Train Station Brawl

Lavi stretched out his muscles as he descended from the train. He looked around the small, crowded station.

"I didn't expect such a tiny place to be so packed," he complained.

"Suck it up," Allen stated from behind him. Lavi turned on him, ready to defend himself from verbal attacks. He began to speak when a piece of luggage hit him in the face.

Allen laughed, "Make yourself useful, help get our stuff off of here." Lavi glared up at him, but his face soon broke into a smile. He grabbed the duffel bag from the ground and slung it over his shoulder. Allen stepped down with two more bags in his grasp. He set them down with the rest of their equipment.

"We are two train rides down, and one more plus an hour trip by car," Krory's voice floated to him over the bustle of the station.

"Che." That would be Kanda.

"I'm glad everything's gone well so far." As the sweet voice struck Allen, he remembered just what exactly happened on that train ride. _Linali slept against me!_ He could not get it out of his head. He didn't _want_ to get it out of his head. The smile that had sub-consciously formed on his lips died, however, when he recalled what had happened after he had discovered that sweet fact. _They know. Four of them know. _Allen was surprised with himself though. He expected to be fearful about somebody knowing he darkest secret, but he was actually relieved, even if only a little. _Maybe its because I know that they are expecting it, so they won't take it so hard when it happens. I really don't know._

"Oi, Allen? Allen? ALLEN!" Allen realized that it was his name being called, so he turned to confront his caller. Lavi stood there with a stupid grin on his face. "You mind not daydreaming, we have a mission to do. Let's go!"

"Right, right. Let's go…" Allen's voice trailed off. Something wasn't right. In fact, something was very wrong. _What is this feeling, its familiar, but what is it?_ Allen knew he should recognize it. He knew that it was something that should be second nature to him. _So why in God's name can't I remember what in the hell it is?!_

When it finally did strike him what the feeling was, he nearly kicked himself. _Shit, how could I possibly forget that that was what it was!?_ Of course, the thing that has caused him to understand his uneasiness could only that they were in deep trouble.

"EVERYONE DOWN!" Allen screamed as he spun around. His face was set and focused, no longer showing any signs of his mind drifting.

"Allen, Wha-" Lavi started before seeing Allen's face. It was battle-ready. And his left eye…Lavi whipped out his mallet and it instantly grew to its normal size. He spread his legs and prepared to fight.

Kanda has realized exactly what was going on the instant Allen had turned and Kanda had gotten a good look at his face. Now he held up two fingers as they began to glow. He unsheathed his black katana, and ran his fingers down the length of the blade. When he reached the end, the blade shone silver. "Mugen," he breathed.

Krory, Miranda, and Linali each took another second to process what was happening. It was a second they didn't have. A spiked whip flew through the wall behind them, shattering it and sending pieces shooting everywhere, and aimed straight for the three.

"Shit!" Allen cursed as he sprinted to them, the cog monocle over his left eye whirling crazily. It was this device which had let him know they were near Akuma. "Crown Clown!" He called, summoning his Innocence to its true form. The energy swirled around him in a cape held together by a gleefully smiling mask. His left arm, the withered, red, cursed arm, transformed into a black leather-looking material. His fingers grew and became razor sharp claws that could cut through almost anything.

He quickly through out his right arm, and Crown Clown obeyed. It shot out and encircled the three confused exorcists. The whip bounced harmlessly off of it. It was quickly retracted through the wall. The next instant, the Akuma stepped out.

"We are in _deep_ shit," Allen heard Lavi say. Before stood the Level 3 Akuma with the whip. Positioned in a semicircle around him were about five others. There was something different about them though. They were Level 3s, that much was obvious, at least to Allen, but they still appeared to be humans.

By now, of course, people had started screaming and running away. All they could see were a bunch of people with weapons about to have a fight in the train station, they had no idea what was going on. Neither, apparently, did the three exorcists that Allen had just saved. Only Kanda and Lavi seemed to have realized that the people standing in front of them were Akuma. _Damn, _Allen thought,_they can't see anything but humans, they probably think it is just a terrorist group._ Allen closed his left eye and concentrated. When he opened it, he activated the special ability of his evolved left eye. He truly opened it.

* * *

Linali sat on ground in confusion. What was going on? Why had these people suddenly attacked them? Are they a terrorist group? They are just humans? Or could they be Akuma? But if they were, they could only be Level 1s, because they still took the form of a human body, once they evolved, they would gain there own structure.

Linali glanced over at Allen and saw him with his left eye closed. She stared at him a bit. _Wait, why is his left eye activated? That means that Akuma are close by. Is it them?_ Allen opened his left eye again, and when he did, Linali felt as if ice had been injected into her system. Her vision seemed to blur, and color seemed to drain out of everything. She was left sitting in a world of black and white, nothing else. No hues, no shades, no color, nothing. She grabbed her head and shook it as hard as she could. This world was suffocating her. She couldn't take it anymore, and she lifted her head to scream. As she did so however, something caught her eye. _The people, they _are _Akuma. I can see them. Level 3s. But why? Why can I see them?_ Linali felt sick to her stomach. She leaned over and vomited violently.

* * *

As Allen activated his left eye's ability, the one that let others around him see the spirits of the Akuma as well as he, he saw his various reactions from his teammates. Lavi simply started, surprised by the sudden change, but he quickly regained his stance. He had been the first ever to see this ability, so he knew what it was. Kanda grimaced but stood firm, almost as if he had expected something was this was going to happen. Krory straightened up in surprise. Once he realized what he was seeing however, since he had been with Allen the first time Allen had come to posses this ability he, too, knew what it was, he immediately activated his Innocence. Krory's Innocence, still unnamed, resided in his teeth, and it gave him the ability to suck out an Akuma's blood convert it to strength. The white streak in his hair stood up and his face grew deadly serious and brutal.

The other two of the group, the females, were not reacting as well though. Neither had been there when Allen had first used evolved left eye, like Krory and Lavi, and neither had mastered the ability to perfectly adapt to any situation, no matter how surprising or unexpected, as Kanda had.

Miranda had slid to her knees. She was crying, tears flooding down her cheeks as she pressed her elbows against the ground. She covered her face with her hands, trying to block out the scene of the tortured, decaying souls of the Akuma.

"Please, God, make it stop," Allen heard her cry. His heart nearly broke there. "Please, please, please…" Her voice gave out as she fainted and fell over into the dust and rubble.

Linali was having a far worse time of it. She had grabbed her head and shaken it like crazy. It was if she was trying to drive the world of black and white from her head, as Allen had tried to do so many after he had been cursed. She had lifted her head, her mouth open, ready to shriek out her heartache, but she stopped when she saw the Akuma. Her look became curious. It lasted less than a second as her face contorted and she vomited onto the floor.

If watching Miranda had almost broken his heart, then what he had just seen happen to Linali had shattered it. _I can't release it though. Everyone who can fight needs to know what they are up against._ Allen glared back up at the Akuma. _Let's even the odds a little, shall we?_ He threw his left arm across his chest. "Crown Edge" he called. On his fingers formed hundreds of crown-shaped projectiles. Allen slashed across with his left hand, aiming at the group of Akuma.

The lead one with the whip dodged quickly, leaving the others to fend for themselves. Two rolled out to the right. The others did not comprehend the concept of avoiding the small objects fast enough. As the crowns slammed into them, they disappeared in clouds of swirling smoke. That left three Akuma. Allen took off, aiming for the longhaired, brown-skinned whip-wielder, the one he took to be the leader. Kanda picked up his own, a large man with short, blonde hair. Lavi and Krory paired up and went for the last one, a woman with highlighted black hair cropped short and spiked.

Allen aimed to finish his fight as fast as he could so he could help the others, especially Miranda and Linali. He dashed to his enemy before the Akuma could recover. He slashed at the Akuma using Edge End, his name for a swipe from his invoked hand. The Akuma ducked however, and avoided the deathblow. It cracked its whip and flung it in Allen's direction. _Shit, can't dodge, gotta block._ He guarded his vital areas with his left arm. The whip struck, but instead of bouncing away like Allen had expected, it wrapped around his arm.

"It's over, exorcist, you should never have come here," the Akuma chided him. Its voice sent liquid ice through Allen's veins. Their voices always did. They were so unworldly.

Allen smiled. "You are correct Akuma, it is over. Clown Belt!" Instantly, the cowl made up of Crown Clown's energy turned into webbing that shot out and wrapped around the Akuma, halting any of its movement. Allen lifted to his right arm to his left and began another Invocation.

"You damn exorcist!" the Akuma screamed. He yanked on the whip, attempting to bring Allen within his swipe range. "DIE!"

"I have no intention of that," Allen spoke calmly from behind the Akuma, which spun around quickly, its eyes wide in surprise.

"You-How-" the Akuma began. Allen never let it finish. He ran it through with his sword. The Akuma's eyes grew even wider as it looked down to see the weapon. "You…bastard…"

"Yes, you see it now, this is the final form of my innocence, an exorcising sword." The sword was gigantic, as tall as Allen himself. The blade was about a foot wide and two to three inches in depth. It was pure white, except a dark border that ran around the edges and the cross that started near the tip and ran the length of the sword until about a half foot above the base of the blade. He was wielding it with his right hand, seeing as how his left arm had _become_ the sword, thus freeing him from the chains. "Good-bye Akuma," Allen whispered as it dissipated into the air, "Rest in peace."

* * *

Linali awoke slowly, not wanting to return to the world of the living. Her eyes fluttered open. Her head was pounding and the vile taste of bile stained her mouth. Somebody was leaning over her, though she couldn't identify exactly who it was. She focused harder, and her vision swam into sharp clarity. A worried face. White hair. A scarred eye no longer sporting a gear over it. _Allen-kun­_.

"Linali?" he questioned upon seeing her awaken.

"I'm okay Allen, what happened?" she claimed as she tried to sit up. She almost immediately wished she hadn't. Her head spun and she slipped back down.

"You saw the Akuma and fainted," Allen explained kindly. There was no scorn in his voice, as one might expect to treat another who had lost face just because of a shock, but rather a kind, comforting tone. Linali's mind jumped back to what she had seen before she had passed out. _The world of black and white._ She shuddered as tears began to form in her eyes. _Just remembering that world, and the Akuma. Who knew they looked like that? No wonder Allen-kun fights so hard for them._ The tear began to leak out of her eyes and down her cheek as she realized something she had never even considered before. _Is that how Allen sees all the time with that eye? Is it like that every time he uses it?_

"Linali…" Allen's voice broke over her thoughts. She looked up at him, and her eyes widened in evident surprise. _His_ eyes were misted and growing wet. "I'm sorry. I…should have never made you see what you saw earlier. Because of me, you are once again in a situation like this."

"Allen-kun…" Linali whispered quietly. She moved her hand over his cursed one. Allen started at this, but he didn't pull away. "Please, don't apologize, Allen-kun. I am glad you showed me what the Akuma look like. Now I think I understand why you are the way you are. I understand why you fight so hard, why you put your life on the line, and why you have dedicated your life to saving them." Allen's eyes widened. "Please…" she said again as her eyes began to close, "don't apologize…Allen-kun…" Her voice faded as she drifted peacefully back to sleep.

Kanda, Krory, and Lavi approached from behind them, where they had been keeping a respectful distance. Well, Kanda and Krory anyhow. Lavi had constantly tried to sneak up and eavesdrop on Allen and Linali's conversation. Kanda had eventually threatened him with Mugen. Lavi had stopped after this.

Allen turned and gave them a half-hearted smile.

Kanda commented, "You just missed one of the best opportunities you are ever going to have, Beansprout."


	5. Souls Laid Bare

Souls Laid Bare

Linali woke slowly. The putrid taste in her mouth was gone now, replaced with a sweet, almost fruity flavor. She realized someone must have given her something to drink. She shifted groggily, wanting to go back to sleep, when it hit her that she was moving.

Her arms were around the neck of a person, and she was riding upon their back, her head resting on their right shoulder. A gentle breeze blew by, bringing a fresh fragrance and flower petals with it. _Such beauty on such a desolate stretch of road._ The wind teased her hair about her, and brought into her face a few strands of her carrier. She instantly recognized it. The smell, the color. It was Allen.

"Allen-kun…" she murmured. Allen, upon hearing his name, looked down at her.

"Linali?"

"Allen-kun," she said a little less sleepily this time.

"Your awake, good," Allen smiled at her. His smile was serene and full of concern. At that point, Linali experienced something she never had before. When he smiled at her, a pit of warmth developed in her stomach and spread throughout her body like a fast acting poison. Only, this was nothing like a poison. It soothed her nerves and yet at the same time made them burn pleasantly. Her heart flew into her throat as its rate skyrocketed. She could hear every expansion and contraction through the blood pounding in her ears. Every nerve was nervously tingling and she felt a deep, heated desire welling within her. All from seeing one of his smiles. _This is no different from any other smile he's given me. So, why now? And what is this feeling? Could it be…? _

Lavi's voice cut off her thoughts, "Oh Linali, good afternoon. Good to see your back with the living." Linali blushed fiercely as Allen glared accusingly at Lavi. His smile quickly faded as he realized he might have something he shouldn't have. Though it really wasn't her fault, Lavi was right. She had once again failed to help in the fight. Lavi's comment had only brought this fact to the front stage, laying it out in the open for all to view at their leisure. She bowed her head as her eyes began to water with renewed tears. She unconsciously tightened her grip on Allen's uniform. He, of course, noticed this.

Allen suddenly pulled off to the side of the road and stopped underneath a sprawling tree that was in full bloom. Petals caressed her skin as they gently floated down to the soft earth.

"Allen?" Lavi's questioned.

"Go on ahead, I am kinda tired. Linali and I will take a break here. We'll catch back up." Lavi and Kanda, who until this point had been pacing along silently, opened their mouths to object, but Allen cut them off, "We'll be fine. If an Akuma gets near us, my eye will warn us. Go on, we'll be fine. I promise."

Linali's tears began to fall down her cheek. She was holding Allen back now. Was she really this much of a burden? First, she couldn't fight, and now, she was dragging Allen down and forcing them to take more travel time, when time was of the essence. The other members of the traveling group nodded their heads in confirmation of what Allen said, including Miranda, who was leaning heavily on Lavi for support. Lavi seemed to be a bit too happy about that; a fact that Allen did not miss and saved for later use.

When the others had traveled far enough that they were out of earshot. Linali slid off Allen's back and seated herself under the tree. She drew up her knees and hugged them close with her arms. Her hair curtained around her face as she hid it and the small streams that tracked down her cheeks.

"Al-Allen-kun," she was so close to sobbing, only her strong will forced the dams holding up her full sorrow to hold, "I-I'm so sorr-" She never finished her statement. Linali's eyes went wide in evident surprise as he knelt down and enfolded her in his arms. They were so warm and soft.

"Please," Allen said softly but gently, "don't apologize, Linali." This broke the dams. What felt like gallons of tears rushed to her eyes in their eagerness to escape. They poured from her eyes as she sobbed heavily, gripping Allen's shoulders as tightly as she could. She buried her face in his neck and bawled for all she was worth, not letting up even for an instant. Allen merely knelt there with his arms around her, protecting her, insulating her. He stayed in that position in for as long as she cried. He didn't budge even once.

After what felt like hours, Linali took a deep breath as the rest of the tears dripped from her eyes. It was almost like coming out of a trance. She was surprised to find that his strong, comforting grasp was still around her. He had stayed with her, never once even considering moving. As this realization hit her, her insides relaxed and the feeling from earlier once again swept through her body, leaving her trembling in excitement. Upon feeling her tremble, Allen's embrace tightened, and Linali felt blood rush to her face. Of course, they had shared hugs before, but normally it had been she had done the hugging, not him. Now she knew why he had always blushed and acted so flustered. Also, this hug was different. Both of their souls were lying open to the other one. Each was proclaiming the feelings stored down deep inside of their hearts.

Linali was too confused to know what Allen's feelings were however. Were they just that of a friend. Or something more…. Linali's own heart kicked up a notch at this notion. Something about the idea of Allen and she having a relationship that went further than just that or comrades and close friends thrilled her. It sent tingles like small electric jolts through her body. _I shouldn't be having these feelings. Allen-kun is a friend, nothing more. But if that's true, than why? Why does this feel so right?_ Linali continued to struggle with her feelings. She had stopped crying and trembling.

Allen pulled back gently, slipping her hands into his as he did so. He held them gently but firmly. He gave her a smile. A brilliant smile. One full of so much emotion Linali was almost blinded. At the sight of it, her breath caught up in her throat. _I might have to face my feelings sooner than I expected, but I don't love him, do I…?_

Allen stood up and lightly pulled her to her to feet as well. Linali only now realized just how close she was to Allen. Being close to him had never affected her before. In fact, it had been a kind of comfort to her to know that he was always close at hand. Then it hit her. How long had she been fighting these feelings? It might have been far more than just today. She had probably just been fighting them subconsciously. _No, no, no, I don't love him. I DON"T LOVE HIM!!_ She screamed internally as the battling feelings tried to be the one who convinced her that they were right.

Eventually, one of the sides won, and her heart rate returned to normal, as did the rest of her body. She realized it must have been fatigue and shock from what she had seen earlier that even caused her to consider being in love with Allen. She was just happy having him as a friend, nothing more. A close friend, one who was always there for her no matter what.

Allen turned and crouched down, motioning for her to climb on. She obeyed, no in the least perturbed by this action anymore. _I was right, I'm not in love with him._ He easily picked her up and continued down the path, heading towards the receding forms of their friends along the dusty, rural road. She laid her head on his shoulder for the second time that evening. If exhaustion had been the cause of her sudden loss of control over her feelings, she would fix that. Her eyes closed slowly and she drifted off to a dreamless sleep.

* * *

"So now that everyone knows, Beansprout, shall we try and find a way to stop it from happening?" Kanda questioned, knowing exactly what the answer would be. 

"Actually, Kanda," Allen started, startling Kanda, who had expected just a straight out 'no,' "everyone doesn't know, so if you could keep your voice down."

The four other exorcists sitting around the small campfire all froze in what they were doing and stared at him incredulously.

"Allen, just what exactly are you saying?"

"I think it was quite clear, Lavi. Not everyone knows about it. I still haven't told Linali."

"But, why?" Miranda inquired. She and Krory had both revealed that they both knew about Allen's secret the instant camp had been set-up and Linali had gone to sleep in the tent.

"I don't want to see her in pain. I can't stand it."

"But Allen, you know that when it happens, she is going to be in pain anyway, we all will. If you tell her, it might help her to get through easier."

"Yes, I know, Lavi. I just can't stand to see her in any pain at all. I want to see her happy as long as I can."

"So that's it then?"

"Yes." Allen answered Lavi's question pretty nonchalantly. Then the totally unexpected happened. Lavi dove at Allen, knocking him clean of his seat. Allen was shocked by Lavi's actions, Krory and Miranda just sat still with their mouths hanging wide open, and even Kanda seemed taken aback by Lavi's sudden violence.

Lavi straddled Allen, his hands gripping Allen's collar so hard his knuckles were white. The one emerald eye that was visible was absolutely glowing with fury.

"You…bastard…" Lavi spit out through gritted teeth, "You…selfish bastard." These words cut Allen to the quick, leaving him feeling defenseless. His best friend had just turned on him. "You know that she is going to be in so much pain when it happens. You know that she will be in even more pain if she can't prepare for it. I understand you want to see her happy. But what about when you _can't _see her? What then? Is she not allowed to be happy then? Do you want her to be in so much pain that she _forgets_ how to be happy? Here you are, with the power to take away enough of her pain that perhaps she will not recede from living a normal life by just telling her a few simple sentences, and yet you will not tel her because of your selfish desire to see her happy while you have the chance! You, of all people, should not treat the one you love like this! IF YOU DON'T TELL HER, I WILL!!" Lavi finished with a yell that almost woke Linali from her slumber in the tent.

The circle of exorcists around the final was silent, too stunned by Lavi's actions to speak, let alone move and go about the activities they had abandoned to witness this rare side of Allen and Lavi's friendship. Lavi wrenched his hands from Allen's collar in disgust and stormed off into the woods. Everyone watched him go. After a minute or two, Miranda stood up and slinked off after him.

Allen's mind was a whir of thought and rebuttals to those very thoughts. _He…he's right. I love her. I think its about time I face my emotions. I love her, who the hell am I kidding? But I am also being selfish. If I don't tell her, when it happens, she may never return to the girl she once was. I have to tell her._ The other side spoke up now. _If you tell her, she will be in pain now. That will put her in danger. Plus, while you are around, seeing the girl you love in pain is a horrible way to pass time. You don't want that, do you?_ The battle continued. _But letting her pass on into a world where she can't be happy at all, where she can't be the girl I love, is the most horrible thing I could ever commit against her. I have to tell her. Tomorrow. _That was it. His rational side had won out over his emotions. One thing did not stop nagging at his mind though. Although he had finally realized his love for her, he also realized it would never be returned._ I can't even entertain any fantasies about it. I have seen into her soul…she doesn't love me._

* * *

It took Miranda awhile in the fading light before she could find Lavi. He was sitting against the gnarled base of a tree watching the sun set. His red bangs gently blowing against his face in the breeze. Miranda tucked a loose strand of her hair behind her ear and approached. She sat down next to him, and leaned into him. His left arm encircled her and his right hand took both of hers. 

"Thank you, Lavi," she whispered gently.

He snorted, "For what? Getting angry at my best friend and flipping out in front of everyone? I hardly think that deserves thanks."

"No," came the reply, "for standing up for our friend when Allen was so obsessed that he couldn't see what he was doing. You were right in what you did. I hate to admit it, but Allen lost sight of how best to help Linali. Maybe his love blinded him. If I were him, I might have done the same thing. He knows his time with her is dwindling, and he wants every moment to be as happy as possible. I am glad you and I don't have to worry about that between us." She snuggled closer to him, using his sturdy body as a shield against the chilling wind.

He smiled down at her, "So am I. Allen and Linali aren't as far along in their relationship as we are however." He leaned her chin up with his hand and kissed her gently. She melted into it, her whole body felt warm and light. When they broke, they both turned their heads and watched the final minutes of the sunset. The red sky was highlighted by orange, purple, and yellow. It looked as if it had come straight from a painting. They stayed there, together in each other's arms, for long after the dyed sky had faded to darkness.


	6. Promise Well Kept

Promise Well Kept

Dawn broke cold and blood red over the quiet encampment. Each exorcist was safely tucked away in their sleeping bags inside their tents, warding off the chill of the early morning. All except one, that is. Allen sat alone watching the smoldering remains of the dancing roaring flames from the previous night's fire. All that was left was a circle of ashes and a few red coals. Allen had not budged all night. He had not slept. Everything that had happened the day before ran through his head, making it buzz uncomfortably.

_Dammit._ He thought for about the thousandth time in those hours he had stayed up. _Lavi's right. I know he is. I need to tell her, but I just can't possibly think of seeing her in pain. Let alone knowing that it would be my fault she would be in that pain in the first place. _Allen was suddenly caught by a blinding light. He raised his hand to block out the intense glare and realized that it was the sun.

He sighed wearily, "I've been up all night thinking about this. Not good. I need to get sleep so I can fight once we get to the village. Too late now though."

"What's too late?" a stiff voice questioned behind him. Allen turned in his seat.

"Getting any sleep," He replied.

"You can rest up before we enter the town," the suggestion was curt and sounded slightly forced.

"Listen, Lavi. About last night. I am sorry, you were right. I was blinded and being completely selfish. I have decided to tell her today, before we get in the village."

Lavi considered him for a moment. His face was serious, as if he was pondering whether or not Allen was going to follow through with his claim. One of his eyebrows slowly raised and his lips twitched. Allen was suddenly afraid he had said something wrong and that Lavi was going to yell at him again. But Lavi's did anything but yell or scowl, his face actually broke into a smile. The grin slowly spread from ear to ear.

He held out his hand, "It's a promise then."

Allen eagerly grasped it, "Definitely, it's a promise."

"You had better tell her, or I will, just like I promised last night."

"I will, I will. I am just glad you and I are back on good terms."

"Agreed. I don't like fighting with you, Allen. But if its to protect one of my close friends, I'll do anything."

Allen nodded in agreement, "I feel the same. I was just being so stupid by not telling her."

"Agreed there too, " Lavi once again broke into a smile.

"Haha, shall we wake the others?"

"There being any others besides us then, Beansprout?" Allen froze at the voice that came from the other side of the camp. Allen glanced over to see Kanda, Miranda, Krory, and Linali standing by their already packed equipment.

Allen plastered a smile to his face, though the dark circles under his eyes and his haggard appearing face discredited it. "Good morning, guys. Just how long have you been standing there?"

"Long enough to know that you two have made up, thank God," Miranda replied.

A quiet voice spoke out, "What do you have to tell me, Allen-kun?"

Allen started at this. These were the first words he had heard from Linali after he had started wondering how to break the news to her. She sounded small and timid and so defenseless, Allen almost changed his mind about telling her. _No, I promised Lavi. I promised _myself.

"Something important Linali. In fact, everyone take a seat, I think its about time I tell all of you exactly what's going on."

* * *

"It started after I had been here for around three months, after the ark incident. When I came back, things were different. My evolved eye felt very different in the tower than it did anywhere else, probably because of the anti-Akuma shield set up around it. 

One night, I found I couldn't sleep. At all. No matter what I tried or did, no matter how many times I shut my eyes and tried to force myself to sleep, it jus wouldn't come. Something in my mind was telling me not to go to sleep. Something was telling me I would miss out on a very important item of interest if I did. So I decided to take a stroll through the hallways to see if could cool off my mind enough to induce sleep. I eventually found myself in Hevlaska's lair. I can still recall it quite clearly.

* * *

_"Who walks alone in these corridors so late at night?" a gentle voice resonated out the question. Allen started, he had not been expecting anyone to break his train of thought. Hevlaska sensed the familiar Innocence as a smile alighted on her kind face. "Allen Walker. What troubles you?"_

_"I don't really know. I can't sleep."_

_"Could it be that you fear sleeping? Maybe something in yours dreams?" This inquiry struck home._

_"It…might be. It very well might be. I have been having horrible dreams. Dreams that involved the death of everyone close to me. _

_"Would you allow me to view these dreams, Allen?"_

_Allen was taken aback by this question, never figuring that anybody could _view_his dreams. "If you can do it, please. Perhaps you can determine what they mean better than I can." Glowing tentacles slowly descended and wrapped around him, much like the first time he had met her. She brought him up to her face and touched his head with her own; this was also reminiscent of their first encounter. Suddenly Allen felt and saw himself being plunged back into the by now familiar nightmare._

* * *

_It was dark. It always was in his nightmare. In front of Allen stretched a desolate landscape. It was littered with rubble and wreckage. It had apparently once been a village. Now it was just destruction. Beautiful trees that must have once graced the soft earth with their gentle blossoms now stood alight, the flames throwing out an eerie light. Shadows swirled and gathered in frightening images. _

_Many patches of bare dirt were dyed crimson with blood. People had been injured here, perhaps even killed. What had once been houses were now tombs. The crushed and mangled body parts of humans were visible sticking out at odd angles from the crumpled roofs and fallen walls of the one-time residential buildings and workplaces. Sounds of conflict rose above the bleak land of death. The harsh clang of metal clashing on metal, the soft thud of a weapon imbedding in soft skin, grunts of pain, and screams of death._

_Allen was sprinting through this carnage, his heart racing and his mind working overtime. He couldn't find them, no matter how hard he searched. His friends had disappeared. His side was searing with pain, but he ignored it. Finding his friends was paramount in his mind. Suddenly an enemy Akuma popped out of the wreckage near his right side. Allen quickly turned and extinguished its life with his giant sword. So many Akuma, and all of them were gunning for him and his friends. _

_A familiar scream ripped through the air. It was a scream full of pain. Allen's blood froze. It had sounded female. Even before the previous scream's echo had died, another one added its noise to the cacophony. This one was male, and weighed down with such anguish that Allen could almost fell it here. His legs turned in the direction he had heard them from. Swifter than ever, he almost flew to find the source of the scream. And there they were. His friends. Three of them were standing. One was crouched over a lifeless form on the ground. Sobs reached Allen's ears. Deep, heart racking sobs. Allen ran over and slid to his knees before the body. Emerald eyes blurred by tears looked up at him in surprise and so much pain._

_"God, no" Allen breathed when he saw who had not survived the Akuma threat. With her brown hair falling over her face, Miranda looked almost peaceful in death. "No. Please, God, no." Allen drove his fist into the ground, causing his blade to shake violently. "Dammit. Dammit, dammit, dammit, DAMMIT!!" he screamed._

_"Allen-kun?" a timid, scared voice behind him asked._

_He spun around. The others were there. Krory was hunched over and breathing heavily. Kanda's shirt was in shreds, and Allen noticed that his lotus tattoo had lost another two petals. Linali had a violent gash across her face and her legs looked as though they were about to collapse from holding her wait. Allen stood abruptly and embraced Linali._

_"Thank God, yo…you're alright. You three are alright." _

_Linali hugged him fiercely, "We couldn't save her though. Miranda…she…gave her life for us. Even when she should have run and hid she stayed out so that she could use her Innocence for us." Linali burst into tears and buried her face in Allen's torn jacket. When she finally broke away, she noticed that her hand had come away slick. She glanced down at it and squeaked in horror. "Blood." She looked over Allen, checking him for injuries. And she found one. A big one. "Allen-kun. You're injured. Your…side…its…" she couldn't finish the sentence._

_Kanda, Krory, and even Lavi peered at Allen. A gasp escaped from Krory while Kanda's eyes shot open even wider then they already were. Lavi's eye trembled as he viewed the horrible wound in Allen's side. The tissue and clothing around it were ragged. A hole had been essentially carved from Allen. It was about four inches across and blood flowed freely from it. _

_Allen had known why his side was burning. But he hadn't cared. Now he had to think about it. He felt his strength draining away and his limbs becoming lead. _

_He managed to give them a smile though, "It's okay, I can't even notice it."_

"_You're lying, Allen-kun."_

"_Well-" Allen's first remark was cut off as he sensed something. "Akuma incoming! Prepare to fight."_

"_I'm so sorry, Miranda," Lavi whispered quietly. He planted one more kiss on her lips before tucking her Innocence into his shirt. He turned around and smacked his mallet on the ground. "Hi ban!" he called. Miranda's body was caught inside of the firestorm. It quickly turned to ash. _

"_Lavi?" Allen questioned, wondering whether his friend was all right._

"_A Bookman has no need for a heart," he replied as he looked straight at Allen. Despite his claim, however, Allen saw in Lavi's eyes and face, in the deep lines that now resided there, a horrible pain that would never leave him._

"_Alright, let's go-" Allen suddenly stopped in his call as he crumpled to his knees. _

"_Allen-kun!" Linali crouched next to him, placing a hand on his back. Allen coughed violently and blood sprayed from his mouth. "Allen-kun!!" Linali repeated, far more worried this time. Allen tried to smile._

"_I…I'm fine…" he voice faltered as he stuttered out the broken sentence. All this time, the Akuma were advancing. The others could hear them by now. Linali ignored them and concentrated on helping Allen. He tried to stand, but his legs buckled and he collapsed to the ground, coughing up blood continuously. _

"_You can't fight like this, Allen-kun," Linali stated with finality._

"_Linali, I don't have a choice, I need-"_

"_I won't let you!" the strength and rebelliousness in her voice surprised him. Her eyes began to tear up again, but she wrapped her arms around his chest and restrained him. "I won't let you. I won't let you go, Allen-kun. I can't stand to lose another comrade. Especially you," she added quietly. _

"_Linali," Allen whispered gently. "Linali, I-" For the third time in a short period, Allen's words were cut out as the Akuma emerged into the small clearing where the exorcists were gathered. Allen once again struggled to stand and fight, but Linali forced him down. She pulled the cloak from around her shoulders and began tearing it into strips. With these, she meticulously wrapped Allen's wound._

"_Stay back and rest up, Allen," Lavi's voice sounded slightly less sorrowful than it had before. "You need to be ready when the Earl shows up."_

"_Do not move from that spot, Beansprout," Kanda spit out at him. "We will buy you time enough to recover to fight the Earl. We leave him in your care, Linali."_

"_Trust in us, Allen," Krory's face was hardened but his voice was soft. "You are the only one who can defeat the Millennium Earl._

"_Ho, ho, ho. What are you speaking about me? Oh do tell!" a sinisterly sweet voice called out across the battlefield. All the exorcists froze and turned their heads. There, in front of all the Akuma, stood an extremely large man-like creature in a heavy overcoat and a top hat upon his head. His mouth was overly large, revealing huge, rectangular teeth. His small pair of glasses went along perfectly with his tiny eyes. He was carrying a sword equal in size and shape to that of Allen's. The only difference between Allen's and this one is that the colors of each blade were reversed. _

"_Allen Walker and company, how nice to see you again." His face suddenly grew sadistic and angry, and several of his teeth became sharply pointed. "How did you survive the ark?"_

"_Che, you'll never find that out, you fat hellspawn!"_

"_We'll see," the Earl replied._

"_Allen, heal quickly. Linali, take good care of him." Kanda once again activated Mugen, and also brought out his scabbard. Channeling the power of his Innocence through his body, he turned the casing into another razor sharp sword. _

"_No…don't…let…me fight him…"_

"_Che." With that, Kanda sprinted towards the Earl. Lavi and Krory followed silently. Allen tried to chase after them, to help them, but he couldn't. His body wouldn't move. _

_He watched in horror as the Earl spun through combat with the three male exorcists. Kanda fell with a hole through his chest. He stood up after a few moment however, and jumped back into the fray. Before that, Allen noticed one of the petals slowly disappearing on his chest. _

_Next down was Krory, his blood dyed the ground around him crimson as his chest spilled all of it. Suddenly, the blood reformed itself into a likeness of Krory himself. Krory's now bloodless body slumped over as Blood Krory charged the Earl from behind. Kanda was down again, and this time, the Earl flew to his body and slashed it a few more times before the Lavi and Krory could stop him. Kanda's eyes blinked opened, he was still alive. He sat up and stared down at his tattoo. Six more of the lotus' petals withered away. Kanda was on his last life. _

_Lavi spun his mallet and used a combination of his fire and heaven seals. A gigantic dragon of fire sprouted from the place where his mallet had struck. It raged right at the Earl, but he merely turned and slashed it apart with his sword. He moved to the exorcist who had created the dragon. Lavi eyes barely had time to widen in surprise before the Earl's blade severed his body into two. Lavi's blood spurted everywhere as his torso fell separate from his legs. Allen cried out and Linali buried her face in her hands._

_The Earl turned his viscous gaze to Krory, or rather Krory's lifeless body. He jumped high into the air and brought the sword down onto Krory's neck, slicing cleanly through in an instant. Krory's blood clone clutched at its chest and lost its form. It splashed back down into a puddle of crimson blood. Kanda charged and used both of his Innocence-infused blades to duel off with the Earl. For a creature his size the Earl's speed and deftness with his blade was surprising. He and Kanda fought amidst a flurry of light and clashing metal. _

_The Earl parried a brutal blow from Kanda, and before the black-haired exorcist could react, he ran him through. Blow exploded from Kanda's mouth as the Earl yanked his sword back out. Kanda slumped and fell over to the ground, motionless; lifeless._

_Allen forced his body to move. He stood, hot tears running down his face and blood flowing from his wound. None of that mattered however. The man who had killed his friends, the Millennium Earl, was standing right in front of him, and Allen was the only one left to fight him._

_Allen lifted his sword and began to move. Before he could however, the Earl disappeared from in front of him. Suddenly Allen heard the sound a metal tearing through flesh. Something splattered all over his backside. He spun around to find the worst scene he could have imagined before him. There, impaled upon a great, dark blade, was Linali. The light in her eyes was slowly fading. She looked at Allen one last time before letting his name slip her lips as her final breath left her, "Allen…kun…"_

_Allen's eyes lit up with loss and fury. Everyone was dead. They had died for him. Only one thought was bouncing around in his head. The Earl, kill him. KILL HIM!!!_

_Allen leaped at the Millennium Earl and brought his sword against his. The polar opposite blades screeched indignantly as the forces controlling them fought bitterly._

* * *

"_Now," Allen explained to Hevlaska, "This is where my dreams differs."_

"_Differs?" the inquiry echoed around her lair._

"_Yes, in some cases, my sword breaks through and it destroys the Earl. After the fact however, I collapse and darkness closes in. I assume that I died, but I always wake up at that point, so I never see the end. The other instance is where the Earl slips around my defenses and cleaves clean through me. In either situation, my friends always die. I have figured out that this part is trying to tell me that I am the only one who can fight the Earl. If I let my friends fight him, they will die."_

"_I agree. I also do not believe that this is not a premonition, but merely a warning."_

"_A warning? To what?"_

"_Well, maybe not so much a warning, as information about what is to pass disguised in a dream."_

"_What do you think it means?"_

"_Well…"_

* * *

Allen stared around at the faces of his friends. Each had a contemplating look upon his or her face. Lavi, who was holding Miranda close as if afraid of losing her right then and there, turned his face up to Allen, 

"What did she say Allen?"

"You know, Lavi. As does Kanda, Krory, and Miranda. You all know."

"Che. We want to hear the exact reasons, Beansprout. Plus, Linali's does not know, so you might as well tell us."

Allen glanced at Linali's worried face before continuing, "It means that when I fight the Earl, first thing I do is fight alone. I will not lose any of you. The second thing it means is that when the fight is concluded, whether I win or lose, one thing is for certain…" His eyes glanced around the circle or his closest friends. He wished that he could have time with them, enjoy their company a bit longer. But he also knew that destiny took precedence over his feelings. His gaze lingered on Linali for a second more than the others. He then looked down and spoke a single sentence, so quiet that the others had to strain to hear it,

"One thing is for certain…_Allen Walker will never return. _


	7. Duel with a Thousand Years of Evil

Author's notes: Okay guys.

First off, sorry it took so long to get up. My only defenses being that school has been a complete bitch for the past two weeks, and this chapter close to tripling the length of my previous one.

Secondly, before you even ask, no, this is not the end of the story, i intend on continuing it.

Also, thanks to everyone who had reviewed and stayed with the story this long, here's to hoping you enjoy the new chapter!

* * *

Duel With a Thousand Years of Evil

i. Thoughts

Complete silence. Nature appeared to be holding its breath, waiting for the next move. It was going to be waiting awhile however, if that indeed was what it was waiting for.

Around a ring of smoldering coals sat six exorcists. Not a single one of them so much as even twitched. Each was drawn into themselves. Each was pondering, debating, choosing, or wishing. Despite whatever the differences between everyone's thoughts were, they were all centered around a single statement.

"_Allen Walker will never return."_

In each and every head, this thought would not go away. This single sentence carried far more of an impact on their hearts than anything ever had in their lifetimes. While four of them had already known this fact, to hear it straight from Allen's mouth changed the view that they had of it. It brought it to a stunning reality. Now it could not be doubted, now it true, now it was not possible that it had just been their imagination.

Lavi's soul was shaken to its very core. When he had first joined the Black Religious Organization, he had believed humans to be troublesome creatures, always arguing and fighting uselessly. Almost with him knowing it though, his attitude began to change. He met Linali, Kanda, and later Allen. Then along came Miranda and Krory. When he had discovered that he had a heart beginning to develop, he had resisted as much as possible.

But he struggled in vain. His heart began to truly form as he became friends with Linali, Kanda, Krory, and Allen, who was always positive and fought with his life for not just Akuma, but his friends and all humans. He even fought for _Noah_. The first time Lavi realized that he actually had a full-blown heart was when he found himself loving Miranda. The feeling surprised him, and he knew that he should not have it, seeing as how he was to be a Bookman, and Bookmen had to be unbiased so that they could accurately record history. But it created a warm feeling throughout his body. It was the most enjoyable thing he had ever experienced.

When he had learned that Miranda returned his feelings, he was overjoyed, which was another new emotion he had just recently discovered. By then, he had accepted the existence of his heart; in fact, he welcomed it. He promised to himself that he would still record history fairly, not letting loss or gain affect his writings and recordings.

Now, at this instant, he was beginning to doubt whether accepting his heart was a good thing. He had forgotten that having a heart would not only mean he would gain joy and love, but also pain and heartache._ Was it really the smartest thing to do? Now I am about to lose my best friend. Can I stand it? I have never had to deal with so much pain before. Maybe I should have never…_ He let the thought die as he felt Miranda tremble. He pulled her into his lap and completely enfolded her in his arms. _What the hell am I thinking? If I had never taken a heart into my life, I would have never ended up with Miranda. As long as I have her, I think I can stand any pain. _He bowed his head and kissed her gently.

* * *

_Allen. Why? I already knew, but why? He's fifteen years old! Why does he have to bear such a burden? He is the one who has to fight the Millennium Earl. He is the one who can never return. All alone. I wish I could help him, but he made it clear we are not to fight for him or with him against the Earl._ Tears began to leak from her eyes and her body trembled. Lavi pulled her into his lap and embraced her. In his arms, she felt comforted. She pressed up against his sturdy chest and prayed with all her heart that she would never lose him. _As long as I have him, I can stand any pain, I think._ She looked up and stared deeply into his green orb before he leaned down and kissed her. She closed her eyes and laid her head on his shoulder. _As long as I have him…_

* * *

Krory had taken the events in confusion. He had known, for awhile now, almost as long as Kanda. When he had first had his Innocence examined by Hevlaska, it had been strange. He had instantly taken a liking to her; her kind face, gentle voice, and pure. This seemed to have surprised her, as most exorcists, including Allen, had reacted with resistance and the belief that they were under attack when Hevlaska had checked their Innocence. Krory had welcomed the warmth into his body however; he relished in it. These feelings had caused Hevlaska to slip up in her normal process. In the brief instance, Krory had gotten a glimpse of one other exorcist's "prophecy." That one person had been Allen Walker. Krory had seen all of his future predication and even the fated conversation talk they had, the one revealing what his dreams had meant. He had kept this fact to himself, allowing Allen to reveal it to him when he was ready. Still, he had never expected Allen's words would have such an impact upon him. He figured that somewhere deep down inside of him, he had always hoped that perhaps what he had seen was nothing more than his mind creating images caused by the invasion of Hevlaska into his body. With it now confirmed, he could no longer entertain these fantasies. Allen was really going to disappear. _This world will not be the same as it was without him…_

* * *

Kanda sat as stone-faced as always. Actually, if one squinted hard enough and trusted in their imagination, perhaps he was even more stone-faced than usual. _Dammit. It really is going to happen. We can't stop it. I am not worried about losing Beansprout, so much as him succeeding in finishing the Earl. If he can't do it, we're all going on a one way trip to hell, seeing as how he is the only one able to. Shit. Beansprout, you had better do your prophecy well, otherwise your "friends" will suffer. If you die, that is just the way that life takes you, I will not care. I haven't cared about fallen comrades in the past, and I will not start with you._

* * *

Linali's mind was a whirlwind of thoughts, emotions, and most of all, pain. She had never experienced anything like this before. Never had the pain been so _intense_. It drove a rusty knife blade all the way into her heart. It felt like it went even further than that, to her soul. It felt as though someone had studied her soul thoroughly, judging its weaknesses and strengths, and then chosen to do the one thing that would hurt her the most. She could have sworn that half of her heart and soul had just been wrenched unwillingly from her body. Her body had gone cold. She had once told Allen that her friends made up her world, and if anything were to happen to them, her world would be destroyed. What she had told him had been completely true. Without Allen, her world would fall apart. _But why? Why will my world fall apart just because Allen-kun isn't there? Why does this pain hurt so badly? It didn't even hurt this bad when I thought I had lost everyone except for Allen-kun. Why?_ Her muscles began to tremble with fright and mental fatigue. She brought her knees up to her chest and hugged them tight. Tears began to form in the corners of her eyes. _Allen-kun. Allen-kun. Why? WHY?_ Linali felt as though she were approaching hysteria. At that instant, she felt a pair of arms surround her. They were warm to the touch, despite the briskness of the morning. She felt safe and secure behind them. As she looked up to see who it was that was comforting her, she found herself staring into deep blue eyes. White hair flowed around Allen's kind face as he smiled down at her. A tingling suddenly struck her feet. It quickly traveled up her body until it reached her face, where it exploded in a firestorm of heat and emotions. Her heart rate doubled and she thought she might have actually blushed. _A world without him? I can't even think about it_. She hugged him back as tight as she could and buried her face into his chest. She could feel every texture and fold in his skin through his uniform, and she relished in it. She wanted to know him as completely as possible before he was gone. Tears streamed from her eyes, soaking his shirt. He gently stroked her hair as she continued bawling. She didn't want to lose him. No matter what, she didn't want to lose him. _When the time comes for him to disappear, whether he wants me to or not, I am going to help him. I am going to make sure he stays. This world cannot live without him. _I_cannot live without him._

* * *

With all these thoughts echoing through their minds, they continued to sit in a silent circle. Not one spoke. Eventually, Allen moved. He started preparing for the rest of the mission. The rest followed suit, silent as in death. 

ii. Into the hell-hole

They moved swiftly, not one person in the group wanting to stop, for fear it would bring about thoughts related to Allen and his pre-determined future. Lavi and Miranda walked closely to one another, their hands tightly entwined. Kanda and Krory walked separately, each engaged in their own thoughts.

Linali was clinging to Allen's arm, afraid to let him go. She didn't want to lose him. He glanced down as her fondly as they continued to walk. He was actually enjoying this situation quite a bit more then he should be. Feeling Linali press this close to him was making him feel overly warm inside. _Now is not the time for these feelings. I know I love her but God, my body doesn't need_ _to make it this obvious._

"Linali," Allen began, "I'm sorry for not telling you sooner."

She turned her face up to his, and he was fairly surprised to find himself looking into a face filled with determination that portrayed her steel will. "Why, Allen-kun? Why didn't you tell me before today?"

"I-I just didn't want to see you in pain while I could see you."

"Allen-kun…"

"I can't stand to see you in pain at all, Linali. And if it's my fault, it feels like somebody has ripped my heart out and stepped on it." Linali's grip upon his arm tightened up at these words. The feelings were back. The tingling began again, and this time warmth spread throughout her body as well. Her nerves were soothed and yet at the same time, excited more than they ever had been before. Linali quickly looked back down at the ground as they continued walking. _I don't love him, I already determined this. I just don't want to lose him. _Suddenly another voice spoke out inside her head. _But why don't you want to lose him so badly? Could it be that you _do_love him, and you just won't admit it?_ The other voice was quick to reply. _Shut up._

The six continued walking in silence. At one point Allen, whose mind was by far the clearest, looked up at the horizon. His jaw fell open in surprise.

"What in God's name?" The other exorcists' heads came up as his question brought them from their thoughts. They all turned their eyes to the same place as Allen's.

"Holy shit," Lavi exclaimed.

"Che, not good," Kanda's comment summed up the situation quite well. Allen continued to stare in awe and growing apprehension. In the distance, hovering just above the horizon, sat a gigantic plume of smoke. Black, gray, and red mixed together to make it appear as though the skies themselves had been ripped open, leaving them to spill their contents over the heavens. Fires could be glimpsed at the base of the huge cloud of death.

"We gotta move," Allen's voice was strained, "Everybody, pick it up." With this he took off, sprinting down he dusty road. The others were close on his heel, each and every one of them thinking the exact same thing,

We're getting closer to the town, which means possibly closer to the Earl, which means possibly closer to his death.

They entered the town, cautious and prepared for almost anything. _Almost_ was the key in this description. Even before they could react something slammed into Allen's back, sending him flying headfirst towards a pile of rubble. Through his aerial journey, Allen got a good look at the town.

It was dark. The bleak landscape was riddled with rubble and debris. Patches of earth were dyed crimson with blood. From under the pile of stone and wood protruded human body parts, horrible mangled and bloodied. The scene rushed around in his head. It was the same one from his dream. His heart skipped several beats he realized this. _Dear god, no. This can't be the same, those weren't premonitions._

Allen spun in air and landed on his feet; only to dodge and roll out to the right to avoid an attack from behind. He got to his feet, spun, and snarled. But the sound died in his throat as he saw what was before him.

All levels of power were represented. One to three, it didn't matter. They were all there. Akuma stretched out before them into the heart of the town. They numbered in the hundreds…no, the _thousands_. The other exorcists hurried to Allen, each stopping and staring in wide-eyed wonder at the vast army before them. The first to snap from his amazed daze was Kanda. He yanked Mugen from its scabbard and activated it. He always pulled his sheath from his side and transformed it into another razor sharp, Innocence-enhanced sword.

Lavi came next. He pulled the travel-sized mallet from his belt and chanted in a whisper, "Grow." The mallet grew to twice its normal size. Krory reacted after Lavi. He drew a small bottle from within his cloak. He downed it in several gulps. As the fresh Akuma blood coursed through his blood, his muscles strengthened and his face grew hardened and battle-ready. The defining white streak in his hair shot almost straight up.

Miranda held out her wrist and spoke softly, "Recovery." Now any attacks to her teammates would be instantly healed, though they would return when her Innocence was exhausted. Linali tapped her heels against the ground, invoking her Innocence. The leggings she wore disappeared in a spiraling strip that shot to the balls of her ankles. There they formed a glowing energy spot on each side of both ankles. Last of all, was Allen, who had been delaying because he had almost not wanted to except the fact that this may be the last time he saw this world.

He spoke in a saddened tone, "Crown Clown." Instantly, his arm transformed again, and the masked cowl swept out behind him in the wind. He whispered the next words quietly as he faced the Akuma,

"Into the hell-hole…"

iii. Kanda's battle

Kanda was first to move from the formation. He circled out around and sprinted towards the line of Akuma. The others followed close behind him, except for Miranda, who held back because her Innocence was purely for defense and protection, nothing more. Kanda, with Mugen and its scabbard now powered up with Innocence, slashed through the enemies. Their powers, their positions, and their levels did not matter to him. He continued moving.

Some of the Akuma dodged, others did not. Those who were not fortunate to were quickly destroyed. Not even dust remained after Mugen had slashed through them. Kanda did not stop running as he sprinted as quickly as he could through the Akuma. Stopping would mean death. He did not intend to die. He still had to find _that person_.

Eventually, Kanda burst out the other side of the hoard of evil creatures. He spun around and surveyed his damage. A long corridor had been hacked through the Akuma, leaving a view of the other side where he had started clear for viewing. He did not give the gathered Akuma the chance to react to his change in position.

"First illusion," he said, "Hell's Insects!" He slashed Mugen across once and a swarm of supernatural insects flew from his blade. They burrowed into the Akuma ranks, devouring everything on sight. Yet another large chunk of Akuma disappeared. "Come on, you bastards," Kanda said through gritted teeth. The Akuma turned as one, almost as though they possessed a single mind between all of them.

"Shouka," he stated simply. The pupils of his eyes transformed into three dots and veins appeared around his eyes. "Third illusion." With this activation Kanda's chest tattoo began to tingle softly, a constant reminder that this drastic increase to his speed and power was taking part of his "life."

"Che, I had better finish this fast," he muttered as he once again jumped within the Akuma. He swirled his blades around him, cutting apart Akuma left and right, not giving any even a chance to so much as breathe. _You had better do your part, Beansprout…_

iv. Krory's fight

He moved quickly, most of the time leaping through the air to his next victim. He teeth and fangs were constantly piercing Akuma and draining them dry. The blood quickly converted to strength within his body, causing him to grow in power with each and every Akuma that he brought down. Long ago he had forced blood out through the pores in his hands, forming a strengthening blood shield over his hands. It came close to tripling his attack power.

As he bit into another Akuma, he noticed one had set up to flank him. _Shit. _He sucked the remaining blood from his current victim and turned to face the other. It thrust at him with a spear from its body. This was obviously its ability, as it looked like vicious porcupine. Krory knew he couldn't dodge or catch it. So he once again manipulated his blood, causing it to form a shield over the area that was to be struck. But that doesn't mean that he didn't feel it.

The wind wooshed out his lungs as he flew and slammed hard into a slab of rubble. _Dammit. I was hoping not to have to resort to this, seeing as how it affects my body._ He caused the blood from his body to leak from every opening it could find. Soon it all gathered in a crimson pool at his lifeless body's feet. However, it formed itself up into the design of a man. A man that had wings and was made of blood. Blood Krory turned to face the Akuma as the one that resembled a porcupine attacked him again with several of his spears. Blood Krory merely stood there. Just as the spear tips were about to pierce him, though, he created holes in the body of blood at every place where the razor-sharp points threatened him. The Akuma, not expected this unstopping forward momentum, stumbled up to Krory's bloody clone. The crimson look-alike pierced through the Akuma's chest with his hand.

As that Akuma faded around his wrist, he took off. He weaved his way in and out the Akuma, slashing here, kicking there. A few times he bit into an Akuma in order to keep his strength up and hold this form. Akuma after Akuma fell before his onslaught. A great circle void of the demons quickly began to overtake the area in which he fought. Shortly thereafter, his widening circle met with that of Kanda's. Krory could see him slashing and hacking ferociously. He clothes were slightly torn in places and he looked strained and at the beginning of tiredness, but he continued fighting. _He's in good shape. We might all actually survive this._ But something appeared on Kanda that cause both he and Kanda to falter in their attacks; Krory out of surprise, Kanda out of pain. Krory glanced back at his own body and noticed the same thing there too.

The wounds had reappeared.

v. Forbidden seal

The mallet never stopped. It couldn't stop. If it did, then both Lavi and Miranda were dead. He glanced back over his shoulder as he once again smashed an Akuma beneath his Innocence. Miranda sat under a small piece of rubble. She had needed to follow them. In order to provide her Innocence's power to everyone, she needed to be able to get them within its range.

"Hi ban!" he called hoarsely. Truth be told, he was worried sick about her. He almost wished that she had not followed, even though he knew plenty well enough that without it one of them could die. The moving column of fire sprang up and engulfed a large section of Akuma pressing around him. And yet, they still pressed in. Their numbers were endless. "Konbo Ban!" he proclaimed as the redhead brought his heaven and fire seals together to form a gigantic dragon made of fire and iron.

It raised its massive head and released a massive roar. The Akuma did not take heed, which was to be one of their last mistakes. The dragon opened its mouth and spewed forth a mix of fire and destruction. Flaming hot bars of iron were flung at breakneck speeds through the air, impaling many Akuma. _Dammit, even with that, they still come?!_ It was true, the Akuma would not stop flowing towards them.

Lavi then used his special talent, one that his Innocence only enhanced. "Moku Ban," he said quietly. This ability allowed Lavi to affect nature. In this case he chose to have to earth rise up and swallow the Akuma by the hundreds. And it did just that. The ground beneath his feet rumbled ominously, and cracks began to appear. Suddenly the earth shifted and a massive pocket descended upon the army. Akuma screamed out their last as they were taken underground and destroyed within the Innocence-drenched earth below.

"GOD DAMMIT!" Lavi swore as loud as he could. He didn't know why, but the bulk of the mass of Akuma was focusing upon him and Miranda. _Wait a second, Miranda…Shit. Of course. They are going after her, they know she doesn't have an offensive type Innocence, and they probably have discovered that she is the reason that their injuries are not lasting upon the others. Looks like it's time to bring out the new stuff_. Lavi summoned yet another seal. This one, however, had never been seen by anybody but himself and the Bookman

He looked up at the ever-pressing-in Akuma, "It's over, demons. Mizu Ban!" The effect was not immediate, but it was there. The smarter Akuma could feel something was coming. Small tremors vibrated through the ground, causing them all to glance down at their feet. The brighter ones of the bunch realized what was happening and quickly took to the air or the highest piece of rubble they could find.

Suddenly the ground split open, and thousands of gallons of water poured out. The water was infused with Innocence, causing any contact with an Akuma to cause instant death for that very one. All around Lavi and Miranda, the field was releasing the spirits of the Akuma into the wind, causing it to appear that a fog was hanging over the area.

The ones that were flying or perched upon high ground were not spared either. While the water did not reach them while it swirled about without a form below them, that quickly changed. Lavi tapped the ground again with his mallet, and the water shot into the air all over. The water began formed itself into long, sharp-tipped spears. Still without a solid form, however, this attack would not work.

One of the Akuma noticed this and pointed it out to Lavi in a sneeringly mocking tone, "You can't hurt us without something solid, exorcists. We can just fly higher that it can reach." Lavi let a small grin play across his face as he reached out his hand and touched the water. Instantly, the temperature dropped and ice began to spread out from his hand touch. It quickly flowed up into the spears, freezing them.

"As I said, Akuma, its over." Lavi threw down his hand. As if they had a mind of their own, the spears broke free from their frozen restraints and plunged at the Akuma. Their screams echoed round the town as the Akuma fell one by one. The water that remained on the ground thawed out speedily. In fact, it did more than thaw out, it evaporated into a low-hanging mist. Lavi gently lifted his hand and the mist engulfed the vicinity, making sure that absolutely no Akuma survived. But unfortunately for him, one did. And this one's ability was not a good one for him.

Pain suddenly exploded from Lavi's side. He spun and crashed to the ground, holding his hand over the wound. _Dammit. _He looked up at the Akuma's wickedly smiling face. _What the hell is he smiling like that for?_ Then Lavi noticed something about his wound that sent chills of fear arching through his spine.

_It wasn't healing._

"What's wrong, exorcissssst," the Akuma hissed, lengthening his 's', upon seeing his facial expression change from determination to a terrified horror. "Noticccce something amissss?"

Lavi's eyes found the ground behind the Akuma standing over him. There was a lifeless bundle under the foot of another Akuma. The same exact one that was standing over Lavi. _God…Dammit. His ability is to clone._ But the bundle at the vile creature's feet is what truly won Lavi's devoted attention. It shape and curves seemed familiar. That's when he caught a glimpse of brown hair.

"Miranda?" Lavi's eyes opened up wide. This was why his wound was not shutting. "Miranda?" Once again, silence answered him. The Akuma began to laugh. Its nasally wheezing voice echoed through Lavi's ears and out his empty eyes. _She's…gone? But she didn't fight the Earl! So why? Why? WHY?!_ As the last thought exploded in his head, Lavi's head shot up. His eyes burned brightly with rage.

Even before the Akuma could register what was happening, his head was taken clean off, leaving just a mere ghostly impression of him upon the air. The clone that had Miranda's body pinned disappeared along with the original copy. Lavi sprinted to Miranda's' knees and crouched down next to her. He picked her up in his arms and brought the unmoving bundle to chest.

"I'm sorry. I am so sorry. I couldn't even protect you, " he sobbed. Tears gushed from his eyes. He buried his head against her neck and continued to bawl. That was when he felt it though. Faint and fading, but there nonetheless. His head came up quickly. _A pulse! She's alive!_ Hope rose within Lavi's breast as he stood and grabbed his mallet, which he had set aside in order to cradle Miranda. He looked up at the night sky, the moon glowing brightly. "Sorry Gramps, I know you told me never to use this one." A faint smile ghosted his lips. "Though why would you have taught it to me if I wasn't ever allowed to use it?" He summoned one last seal.

He spun his mallet and whispered, his voice barely audible over the wind blowing through the small, Akuma-free zone he was in, "Raito Ban." Light flashed up in a circle around Miranda and himself. It continued around them, seeming to spin faster and faster by the second. It slowly creeped to Lavi. It touched his boots and flew up his leg, gaining speed as it went. When it got to his face it forced its way down his throat, eyes, and nose. It did the same to the quickly fading Miranda lying upon the ground.

Lavi felt a tingling in his chest as the light spread throughout him. He felt it flow back up to his throat and opened his mouth as it shot out. Miranda's light also flew from within her, and they met in air. Pulses ran between the connected beams of light. They traded hosts, Lavi's to Miranda, and Miranda's to Lavi.

And just like that, the light faded and disappeared. Lavi fell to his knees, severely weakened from using the forbidden seal. He laid his head on Miranda's chest, and was happy to hear a strong, steady heart pumping within.

He smiled dimly as darkness closed in around him.

One thought was running around in his head as his brain shut down and his senses quit.

She's okay.

vi. Let it commence

The fight was not going well for the team of Allen and Linali. It had started off fine. Allen had almost quite literally walked through the hoard of Akuma. He had used Crown Edge several times, which had brought down rows upon rows of the dreaded enemies. Linali had leaped through the air, jumping from one crater only to cause another seconds later as she slammed straight back down into the rank of demons with humongous.

Before their onslaught, the Akuma were continuously transforming into wisps of smokes while leaving the world of the living once again. Allen's attacks with Edge End were filled with pure power, taking out groups of five to ten Akuma per swipe. Linali's gravity and Innocence boosted drops sent seven Akuma at least automatically from their lives, not to mention stunning some and throwing even more out across the town.

Now, though, Allen could tell that Linali's leg muscles were beginning to give way. She could not keep fighting as she was now, else her legs would probably destroy themselves, meaning she would never even _walk_again, let alone fight. _Dammit, I have to end this._ He grabbed his left wrist with his right hand and pulled back as his arm transformed into his gigantic sword.

"Let's go, Crowned Clown," he whispered to the blade. He preferred to call his Innocence by its full name when it was in its final form. He shot out like a bullet, slashing and hacking apart his enemies without a hint of hesitation. Slowly but surely, the number of Akuma was decreasing.

Linali continued to smash with full force into the ground, while Allen exorcised countless demons with his blade. The Akuma realized this and began to fight with even more ferocity. One appeared behind Allen as three more attacked from the front. Allen held his arm pointed at the Akuma that was trying to flank him. "Clown Belt!" the cowl transformed into a webbing and shot out, quickly wrapping around the helpless Akuma. Allen brought his arm in an over head arc, throwing the single Akuma into the three from the front. Even before it had they chance to strike the ground, Allen brought a horizontal slash across all four, vaporizing them in an instant.

Allen glanced behind him to see Linali resting against a piece of rubble. Several Akuma were beginning to close on her, but she was far too tired out to react. Allen leapt through the air. As he landed, his sword cleaved one of the Akuma straight in half, from crown to crotch. The others fell victim to the great blade before they could even register their comrade had died.

He smiled kindly down at her as he offered her his hand. "Are you okay, Linali?"

"I think so, Allen-k-" her comment died and her eyes widened in fear. Allen's smile was quickly replaced by a frown. In Linali's frightened orbs, he saw an ominously looming shadow behind him; it was getting closer. Allen spun quickly, bringing his pure white blade to bear as he did so.

The harsh sound of metal smashing into metal surprised Allen, as he had expected the exorcising sword to cleave straight through his opponent. That was when he recognized the blade that his own had met in the clash. It was the exact same as Allen's, only the colors were reversed. _Shit…_

Allen slowly looked up. As his eyes traveled up his opponent, he took into note the large body, bordering on obese, the oversized mouth and viciously pointed teeth, the elongated ears that filed down to sharp tips, and the small pair of eyeglasses set upon his nose. Behind the pair of bifocals, Allen's eyes met those of the man with whom his duel had commenced.

Allen's eyes met those of the Millennium Earl.

His death was staring him right in the face.

vii. Never to return

"Allen Walker. How nice to see you again," the Earl's voice reminded Allen of poisoned rose petals. Allen wasted no time. He threw the blade against the Earl's; hard. The Earl slid back several feet, but he never lost his balance.

"Ho ho ho, anxious today aren't we?" Angry, sadistic lines appeared on his face and his eyes shrank even smaller, if that were possible. "Fine then. Let us duel, Allen Walker." His feet moved faster than Allen thought a creature of his size possibly could. He was before Allen in an instant, and already swinging his dark blade horizontally.

Allen caught the opposing blade upon his own. The force surprised him. Allen skidded back, furrowing deep trails in the earth as his feet were pushed through it. Sparks were flying off of the opposing blades, neither giving the other the advantage. "Damn…it" Allen said through gritted teeth. He pushed back with all his might. Veins formed on his arms, looking ready to burst. And yet, the Earl and his sword held strong.

Suddenly the Earl moved again, spinning out to the left and leaving Allen throwing his weight against nothing. Allen, now without support, fell forward and stumbled to the ground. _Shit! How could I fall for such an simple trick?! _Allen didn't even have time to answer his own thought as he felt a sharp, burning pain rip across his back.

He screamed in agony and rolled up to his feet. His vision was blurry and his head was swimming. He crouched unsteadily on his heels. _Wound to the back, pretty deep. Not good…_ Allen could literally feel his strength ebbing away with the blood flowing freely from the wound. He slowly stood, trying not to perform an action that would cause his body to succumb to the tiredness already beginning to spread.

Allen turned his cloudy eyes to the large form that stood not ten feet away, smiling maniacally. "You bastard," Allen choked out.

"No need for such strong words, Allen-kun," the bittersweet voice replied. Allen's head felt like it was full of an angry swarm of bees. _It's the wound. I can't possibly keep up with the Earl like this. Guess I only have one option._ Allen hefted his sword over his shoulder and concentrated.

* * *

Linali watched the ensuing battle with wide eyes. It was fast. Almost too fast for her to follow with her eyes. _How can those two fight like this?_ But the speed was quickly reduced as they clashed violently once again. Small, bright sparks were flying off in all directions as metal screeched against metal. Linali was beginning to believe that perhaps they were just going to stay like that the rest of the fight, but it was not to be. 

The Earl spun around Allen's defenses suddenly, causing him to lose his balance and be pitched to the ground. Linali then saw the Earl strike out viscously. She almost felt the pain as the dark blade tore through Allen's back. She almost screamed out in agony with him as he rolled to avoid any further attacks against his defenseless self. She almost stood and almost fell back down with him as he slowly and unsteadily rose to his shaky feet.

She soon noticed that Allen was merely staring at the Earl. He was fighting or even getting in a defensive posture. His strength seemed to be leaving him, as he appeared to deflate before her very eyes. _His wound. It's sapping his energy. He can't do anything about it. It's over! _Linali tried to climb to her feet. She tried to force he exhausted legs to move. She knew that they would most likely never move again if she could get them to now. But Linali did not care. The only thing she cared about was that Allen was in trouble. She could not forget the promise she made herself. _When the time comes… The time has come. I must fulfill my promise; I must help Allen-kun, to keep him in this world._

This was the point at which she looked back up. This was the point where she noticed that Allen had his sword rested upon his shoulder. She looked closer, wondering if her eyes were deceiving her. They weren't. Allen was…_glowing_. She finished the statement in her mind.

He slid his sword down his back, over the wound. She heard him hiss in pain, and then it hit her what he had done. Tears formed in her eyes. _You put yourself through that much pain, just to defeat him…Allen-kun, you really don't plan on coming back from this alive do you?_

* * *

Allen slid the heated sword across the gash streaked across his back. It felt as though somebody took white-hot coals and inserted them directly into his nerves. He held back a scream however, and sastified himself with a hiss, letting his pain leak through his teeth in a sound not unlike the wind rushing through the trees. He slowly opened his eyes, already feeling his strength returning, stopped from leaving his body by the rough surgery he had performed on himself. 

The wound now cauterized shut by the intense heat he had focused into his sword, Allen took a fighting stance and prepared to continue his duel with the Earl. The creature in reference raised his eyebrows at the young exorcists sudden recovery.

"You seemed to have grown stronger since last time, young Walker."

A smirk seemed to appear upon Allen's chapped lips, "So I have, Earl. Well now, shall we begin?"

"We shall, Allen Walker-kun, we shall."

And with that almost polite comment that could almost be passed by as a talk between gentlemen, the two threw themselves against each other. Around the rubble strewn landscape, where crimson dyed the ground and bodies were as common to the eye as normal, living beings were in everyday life, the sound of their fierce clash resounded. The harsh sound of metal viscously striking metal. The screech the resembled that of a dying animal when the blades were held with as much force as could be mustered against one another.

"Ho, ho, ho. You strength has increased since before, Allen-kun."

"I told you before, I have gotten stronger." Allen accented this comment by attacking with a strike that he put extra power behind. The Earl caught it on the flat of his blade, but still it threw off his guard. Allen followed up this attack by spinning and slashing upward to his right. The Earl barely had enough time and position his sword in between himself and the assault. The tip of the white blade grazed across his stomach and partly into his defending arm. Where it touched cross marks shone white and vapors hissed from the Earl's skin.

The fat creature stumbled backwards from pain and surprise. He looked at the white-haired boy's massive sword. "Damn that blade of yours, boy," he clutched at his wounds.

As a reply, Allen lifted his sword and pointed it at the Earl as he simply asked, "Shall we continue, Earl?" But Allen did not wait for an answer, instead his flew straight up to the Earl and instantly initiated a series of slashes, stabs, parries, and attacks that moved at such a speed that even the Earl had a hard time keeping up.

* * *

For Linali, still lying exhausted against the upright slab of rock, the speed and intensity of the fight was far too much. The very air around her felt suffocating. It was smothering and fight before her was not helping. She could quite literally feel the shock waves from the force the two created every time they met in heated stand-offs. 

But Linali could also tell that both were tiring. The fight was nearing its end. The blows were becoming slower and more weighted. They had less precision and finesse about them. The speed of the epic battle was also slowing enough that Linali was also beginning to be able to see it. _This battle has to end soon, neither can hold on for much longer…_

* * *

_This is nearing its end. Neither the Earl or I have much energy left. Have to finish this now._ With this thought came a feeling of regret and pain. Once the fight was finished, one way or another, Allen would not be going home. Memories of his time with the Order swirled around in his head; he didn't want to leave. He wanted to stay and be with his friends. He wanted to stay and be with Linali. At the thought of her, his mind centered around her. Leaving her would probably be the most painful for him in his life. Despite this, however, Allen hoped that Linali would get over his death and move on in her life, staying happy and optimistic as she once been. He didn't want to be forgotten, but he also did not want his friends and comrades, especially the girl he loved, to dwell upon his death after it had occurred. 

He caught a blow from the Earl and quickly spun. He then delivered one of his own to Earl's upper-right arm. The creature dodged under the attack and slashed in a straight vertical line up, forcing Allen to jump back to avoid. As he was airborne, he realized the Earl was no longer in front of him, but rather behind, waiting for defenseless moment that always came with landing to strike. Allen twisted in air and brought his sword to bear upon the Earl as he landed. The force he gained from the air added extra strength to his strike.

The blades screeched horribly as they grinded against each other. _This is it! I have to put everything into this._ Allen focused as hard as he could, bringing all of Crowned Clown's power into his sword. A glowing white field began to surround it. The Earl noticed this, and then began to do the same with his own. A malicious looking black energy engulfed his blade.

"So this is it then, is it Allen-kun?" he questioned sweetly. The opposing blades began to give off a great amount of energy. Bright enough to blind, it was thick enough that it could literally be seen with the naked eye. It swirled about them, dipping, rising, and eddying, but all the while focusing upon the place where the two massive swords were pitched in a heated struggle.

"Yes. Yes it is Earl," Allen replied flatly. Small amounts of the energy were actually beginning to separate from the bulk of it. They flew off into the deserted town, appeared like ghosts among the rubble. In that instant, it seemed as though the dead from the village had risen from their graves to see what all the fuss that was disturbing their eternal rests was.

Allen and the Millennium Earl both put all their strength, all their hope, all their anger, everything about themselves, into their blades; each trusted that theirs was going to become the victorious one. Each was convinced that the other would not be able to with stand the power from their blade. At first, the swords and their wielders did not budge. Slowly, however, a change became apparent. One of them was being pushed back. One of them was losing in the competition of strength.

As he knees began to buckle, Allen gritted his teeth and pushed back hard on his blade. But it was of no use, no matter how much force and pressure he put into he fight, it could not rival that of the Earl's. As such, the Earl was forcing him to his knees, breaking down his defenses so that the final attack would be sure to hit and destroy. Allen continued to hold his blade against the Earl's, but his legs gave out, forcing him to the ground. He was now upon his knees, yet he was still fighting. He could not let the Earl win. _Yet he's so damn strong…_

"ALLEN-KUN!!" a scream reached his ears. He glanced over at its source, and there sat Linali. She was looking back at him with eyes wide with fear and…wait, was that disappointment he saw? "Fight harder, Allen-kun! You can't lose, if you do, what will happen to your friends?! What will happen to you and this world you worked so hard to protect?! You _must _win, Allen-kun! You're the only one who can, you have to. You _will!_ I know you will!"

The heat and emotion is her voice, and the strength she channeled through them despite the tears washing down her face, brought Allen back into reality. She was right, if he failed, then his friends would be forced to fight the Earl. And then… His dreams came back to him in a rush. _No, that won't happen. I won't allow it to._ "I won't allow it," he spoke aloud, for his confidence was swiftly coming back. He now had something to keep him going. The thought of what would happen if he didn't go on. Allen glared back up at the Earl, the spark of the fighting spirit once again lit within his eyes. This seemed to surprise the Earl, as his eyebrows raised above the top of his small glasses. More light poured out from Allen. "I…won't…allow it," he spoke through gritted teeth. He pressed back against the Earl. And he started to win.

Now the Earl's eyes were wide open with surprise and anger. The white-haired boy slowly stood, adding even more power to his attack. The field of white around his blade suddenly flared to twice its size. It quickly began to overtake the black aura of the Earl's. The light that shone due to the clash became even more brilliant, forcing Linali to look away. She would not be able to watch this fight to the end because of the light. Though that was not the only reason she told herself. She didn't want to see Allen lose if he did. Linali closed her eyes tightly. _Please, let him win… Let him win…_

Suddenly, the sound of shattering metal resounded through the small town. It was quickly followed quickly by harsh noise of a sharp edge tearing through flesh, and then an inhuman scream of pain and agony. One of them had lost. One had been finished. Linali reluctantly opened her eyes. She didn't want to open them to find Allen's mangled body with the Earl standing over it laughing maniacally.

As she eyes opened and the bright light faded, however, she saw something that she hoped was not a dream. Strewn over the landscape full of death were pieces of a shattered blade. Small to large they ranged, glinting tauntingly in the failing sunlight. They were dark in color. Linali slowly took in the scene before her. There stood the two opponents, backs turned to one another. Each held their blade point at the ground. The fight was over; they both knew it. Linali looked over Allen critically, making sure he was ok. Aside from a few scratches and the viscous scar that arced across his back he was fine. His sword shined brilliantly, reflecting the oranges and reds of the setting sun. _Thank goodness._

Linali next turned her gaze to the fat creature clutching at his chest. In a straight line across it was a row of white crosses that constantly released steam into the air, as if they were burning him non-stop. Each went straight through to the other side, barely leaving any skin and muscle to hold the Earl's upper body on. Had he still lived with most of the vital organs being slashed, Linali would never know. _Then again, he's not human, so maybe he doesn't have organs?_ However, it was clear from the Earl's stance and expression that it had been a critical hit. He would not be living to see another day. His once great blade was now broken. The remains of the upper portion were thrown upon the ground, the actual part of the blade that had stayed in tact was thrust into the ground, making an impromptu monument to the unbelievable battle that had occurred there. He fell to his knees. He glanced one last time over his shoulder at Allen before quietly whispering, "Damn you…boy…" He then fell full into the dirt, his face bounced roughly before settling down to rest there forever.

Linali returned her gaze back the boy standing not too far away. A slight breeze blew over their location, bringing with it the faint scent of cherry blossoms in full bloom. She let a smile slowly claim her mouth. He was alive. There he stood, the Innocence cloak around his shoulders gently waving in the wind as his snow white hair moved restlessly about his head. He turned to face her with a smile upon his face. It was a genuine smile. The storm clouds that began to gather behind him and the distant roll of thunder did nothing to dampen his spirits. He had survived! The Earl was finished and Allen was still here!

Tears once again took up residence in the corners of her eyes. But these were not tears of sadness, of course not! These were tears of pure joy. Little bits of the happiness she was feeling right now that had manifested into small packets of water that shone like crystals when the sun struck them.

But a movement behind Allen caught her attention. She focused on the spot, not really positive if she had seen something. But there it was again, and this time it was accompanied by the noise of something being dragged along through the dirt. Her eyes widened as the source of the sound moved out of the shadows and into her field of vision. An injured, half-dead Akuma was dragging itself through the dirt and small scrubs with its one good arm. Well, its _only_ arm actually. The other was gone, as was its legs.

As Linali stared at it, she realized it was not alone. All the other surviving Akuma were all crawling, limping, and rolling to their position. _Wh-What is this? _Linali glanced back at the first Akuma that had appeared, and watched as it turned to dust. _What? _That was when she noticed that all around her and Allen, the Akuma were all becoming the misty substance they did when they left the world.

"What is going on?"

"The Earl is dead. They no longer have a controlling force, so they are fading and returning to where they belong," Allen explained as he began to walk to her. In a few more seconds, only a few Akuma remained. Allen was still approaching Linali, the distance between her and fight had actually been far more than it looked. He was glad she had stayed clear.

"Linali, let's go ho-" Allen's warm statement died upon his lips however, when he noticed what the final Akuma remaining was doing. "Dammit! Linali, watch out!"

Linali's head snapped around to find the Akuma. Her eyes widened in surprise. The Akuma had in his hand a section of broken piping, rusted and jagged at the edges. He had his arm cocked back, and as Linali watched he whipped it forward, thrusting the improvised spear hard and fast at her. She could only sit and watch helplessly at flew directly towards her heart. Her legs wouldn't move, and even if they would, her mind was frozen. She had thought it was over. She had thought she wouldn't have to worry about this again. Allen was screaming something to her, but his voice was muffled._ Allen-kun, I'm sorry. You survived your ordeal, only to have me turn around and get killed instead. Good-bye, I'm sorry._

Linali closed her eyes as the pipe came closer. She still not prepared for the pain and shock of it striking her in the abdomen. _Wait…the abdomen? It was aimed at my heart._ But where it had struck did not matter. What did matter was the searing pain from the puncture wound. Linali noticed that something was wrong, however. With the speed the piping had been thrown at, it should have embedded itself deep within her, shredding any organs, muscles, and tissues that got in the way. But the sharp implement had not penetrated her too far. She could feel it. A good two to three inches, but nothing serious or life threatening. She cracked her eyes, and upon seeing that she was not dead, opened them both fully. She was looking at her abs, where the iron pipe was protruding from. Just as she had suspected, it was not too deep. She reached up and gripped the pipe. She began to pull it from her body. Surprisingly, however, she met resistance, which only made she struggle harder.

She heard a familiar cough. Allen must have reached her while her eyes were closed. "Linali," his voice was weak, "are you alright?"

"Yes," she replied without looking up. She already knew that he was looking at her with those worried eyes. "I just need to get this pipe out of me."

"No Linali you shou-"

Linali ignored him and yanked extra hard on the metal construct, ripping it the rest of the way from her body and an extra six inches out of it. He heard Allen cough again, harder this time, and blood splattered against her breast. She looked down at it in alarm. Then she looked back up. There was those deep blue orbs. Full of worry for her. She glanced down his body and gasped.

Coming through his left side of his chest was an iron bar. The very one that she had in her hands. The same one that she had just yanked out, and thus forcing it through Allen's body as well. That was what he had been trying to tell her.

"Allen-kun…you…you," Linali stuttered. He had thrown himself in front of the attack, preventing her form taking any serious harm. Now he had taken the life threatening injury. Now he was the one in danger. Now he was the one who was going to die. Again. "Why, Allen-kun? Why did you do that? You had finally beaten the Earl! And you lived! Did you not want to live of the rest of your life?!"

The ends of Allen's mouth curled slightly into a gentle smile. "I cannot live in this world if you are not in it, Linali."

"Wh-Wh…This isn't the time to be saying such things, Allen-kun," Linali squealed through the blush creeping across her face. "You mustn't speak. It will waste our energy. You have to hold on until we can get to a hospital or a doctor."

Allen gently replied, "Linali, there isn't a hospital or anyone with medical training anywhere near us."

"Then just hold on until Miranda gets here."

"Linali!" his voice was a little more forceful now. She turned to look at him as his features softened up. "It's over for me. I knew that I wasn't going to make it back from here alive. I am glad that I was able to die protecting you, rather than fighting the Earl." Linali began to cry; she couldn't help it. He was going to die, and she could do absolutely nothing about it. He gently lifted her chin however and stared deep into her eyes. "I love you, Linali…"

He leaned down and gently placed his lips over hers. For Linali, the kiss was pure bliss. Heat exploded through her body and a contented feelings settled over her. It was the best feeling she had ever felt, and she could not put it into words. The only thing that she could think was that it was always meant to be like this. She belonged with him. She had just blinded herself to it before. Her eyes became half-lidded as she melted against him, being sure to avoid the sharp bar protruding from his chest. She relished this feeling. She knew that if she could spend the rest of her life with Allen, then she would feel this way every day.

But it was not to be. As she broke the kiss she noticed his eyes were dim, the fire within them was dying. "Good-bye…Linali…I…love you…"

With this final statement, Allen slumped lifeless to the ground.

"Allen…kun…? Allen-kun? Allen-kun!" But Linali knew that it was pointless to say his name. She threw her arms around his form and wailed bitterly into his neck. His body was still warm, though she could feel even that fading as the time since his death grew longer.

Her cries reached far into the desolate village, drawing out the other exorcists, all beaten and battle-worn, to the spot where she cradled Allen's broken body.

Krory, Lavi, Kanda, and Miranda all stood and stared. Each was shocked to the core. They all then saw the other form on the ground. The obese, almost slashed in half figure of the once most evil creature in the universe.

"The Millennium Earl," Lavi's whispered as his eyes widened. "He did it…he really did it. The Earl is dead."

"But…Allen-kun…he's…" Miranda stuttered out at his side. He grip on her shoulder tightened.

"I know he is, but we have to be strong. It's what he would have wanted…"

Kanda and Krory bowed their heads.

"Beansprout…" a soft murmur passed from Kanda's still mouth.

As the rain began to pour over the scene, the tears upon each and every one of their faces were hidden. Lighting struck near them, and thunder crashed violently over their heads.

But they did not budge.

They stayed still and mourned for their friend.

They mourned for their companion.

She mourned for her _love._


	8. New Arrivals

okay guys, i managed to get another chapter in despite the ban, though that whole thing is still going so it could still be awhile befor eht next one. anyways, sorry for the length...enjoy...

* * *

New Arrivals

The funeral was short. Despite this, however, it appeared as though the whole of the Black Religious Organization had turned out to honor the young man. A memory of a kind boy with a gentle smile touched all of their minds.

Komui had made the decision not to cremate Allen's body. He had chosen this for two reasons. One, Allen had destroyed the Earl, and thus all the Akuma had either disappeared or were now severely weakened, barely even strong enough to be considered Level 1's. The second reason was morale. Though the Earl was now gone, the Innocence was still out there, as were the Noah. If the boy that everyone at the Organization had come to love's body was burned, the soldiers would most likely abandon all hope that they still clung to. It would be a crushing blow to them.

Instead, Komui had settled for a more typical funeral. Allen's body was placed inside a casket crafted of dark wood, and buried on the grass in front of the tower. His was the only headstone that was placed on the whole grounds. A soft, mournful tune swirled through the air in the background, and along with the deep storm clouds that gathered overhead, created the perfect atmosphere for a funeral. Everyone was dressed in black, and barely even a hint of any other color was visible in the sea of people. Up in front of everybody else were Allen's closest friends.

Miranda was wailing miserably into Lavi's shoulder while he held her close as tears flowed down his cheeks. Krory had his head bowed and small droplets of water could be seen endlessly falling from his nose. Kanda was staring blankly up at the sky with misted and unseeing eyes. Linali was standing directly in front of Allen's grave. The wind played with her hair, sending it around her head in a curtain that hid her face from view. But not a single tear fell from her eyes. Linali Lee was not crying.

She wanted to. God did she want to. She wanted to release all this sorrow and pain from within her. To purge it from her body, even if it took everything else with it. But she couldn't. It did not matter how hard the pain struck her or how many times, she couldn't cry. Why? The answer was simple. Linali had run out of tears. It had taken two days to get themselves and Allen's body back to headquarters. During those two days, Linali had not slept. She had barely eaten. All she had done was cry. She had cried because she had finally found the love of her life, only to lose him in a cruel twist of fate.

Worst of all, however, was that Linali blamed herself for his death. She had promised to herself that she would help him survive when the time came. But in the end, she had become the cause of his death. He had been defending her when he had sacrificed himself. If she hadn't been there, Allen would not be dead.

"We gather today to honor a fallen hero," Komui's voice echoed over the open space. "He has given his life protecting that of another comrade. His final actions saved the lives of millions of innocent people and exorcists alike on this planet. Even though he was only a boy, he showed courage that no other man, woman, or creature on this Earth has ever possessed. He had made the ultimate sacrifice, and he shall be forever remembered."

This small speech brought the rest of those in the crowd who were not already crying to tears. And yet not a single drop of the salty water fell from Linali's eyes. Inside she was wailing, screaming, crying. But her body just refused to let those emotions out. The funeral slowly came to an end. People began to make their way back into the tower. Those that lingered were those that would miss the young man the most.

Miranda was still buried in Lavi's chest. Both gave one last look at the grave of their best friend and then turned back to the tower. Krory followed them shortly, murmuring a final good-bye as he entered the building. Kanda stood silently leaning against the trunks of one of the few trees that dotted the grass in front of the headquarters. He had his arms folded and his eyes closed. He was waiting for something.

Linali had not even moved from her previous spot. She merely stood and looked at Allen's grave with glazed eyes. She took in the words that were etched upon the stone face of his headstone.

_Here he lies_

_Pure as snow._

_The one who gave it all,_

_For all._

_The boy that lived_

_In both light and darkness_

_Protecting, destroying, _

_And saving._

_He fought for all._

_He walked in both worlds_

_And gave his life_

_Defending both._

_Here he lies,_

_The Destroyer of Time_

_----------- _

_Allen Walker._

The words ran hollow in her mind. He was still gone. It didn't matter that he was the great 'Destroyer of Time.' He was dead. That was all that mattered to Linali. He hugged herself tightly. Despite the rain, it was a relatively warm day. So why? Why did Linali feel so cold? But she knew the answer. In fact, she knew that she would most likely never be warm again. It was because he was gone.

The "sun" slowly set, casting the tower and the surrounding area into the darkness of night. Kanda still waited, and Linali still stood at Allen's grave. As the sky became too dark to read the words cast on the headstone, however, Linali finally and reluctantly removed her gaze from Allen's grave. She grudgingly made her way back to the tower, head bowed and eyes cast to the ground.

As she past the tree under which Kanda stood, he, too, moved. He walked purposefully to her. As he reached her, he laid a hand on her shoulder. Linali glanced at him, her eyes showing just how much that had meant to her. As if embarrassed, Kanda quickly drew his hand away and continued to walk next to Linali in silence. And so they retired for the night.

* * *

Not a word was spoken between the people who had been there to see Allen's death until several days later. And even then it was strained and painful, especially for Linali.

She spent many a night wandering the halls aimlessly, eyes filmed over and unseeing. Her friends worried about her, but she eventually began to revert to what she once had been before Allen's death. This of course, pleased everybody at the Organization. Lavi finally felt relieved about the conversation he had had with Allen the night before his death. He had begun to doubt if he had done the right thing, seeing as how one of his last talks with Allen had been one full of anger and resentment. Now though, after seeing Linali become happy again, he had finally believed that he had made a correct action. Many times, he looked at the sky, and asked Allen silently if he was proud of what Lavi had done. He asked him if he could see Linali, and that she had finally come out of her sorrow.

None of this is to say that Allen was not missed. He was. Dearly. Many people could be heard reminiscing about a particularly funny or touching moment with him. Even Kanda seemed to soften when the young man's name was brought up in conversation, though he would never admit to it. Linali knew that behind that emotionless mask he wore, though, that he was suffering. He had lost one of the few friends he had ever found, not to mention his number one rival. She would not forget the kind action of comfort he had showed her on the day of Allen's funeral.

Yet, time moved on. So did people. Allen was never forgotten, but he became more and more distant as new events and people preoccupied everybody's minds.

* * *

Lavi sprinted through the corridors of the Black Religious Organization.

"Shit, I'm late and they're gonna start without me. Damn you Kro-chan, why didn't you wake me?" Lavi cursed his next door neighbor. "No, you just had to get _you're_ stinking ass out of bed and not bother to even knock on my door. Bastard." Lavi continued to cuss and mutter to himself as he quickly made his way to the cafeteria.

He burst through the double doors panting and out of breath. Several people gave him strange looks, but he brushed them off. He scanned the crowd of faces looking for his friends. The number of people surprised him. _Look's like the whole organization turned out for today._ Suddenly he caught sight of a tall figure with a very distinguishable streak of hair that stood out from the rest of his face.

"Ooooohhhh, Kro-chan!" Lavi called in a sweet voice, while layering as much malice underneath of it as he could. However, Arystar Krory gave no indication that he had heard Lavi. Lavi gritted his teeth. _He is sssooooo dead when I get to him._ With that thought, he began to stomp his way through the crowd. When he was about halfway to Krory, however, a flash of dark brown made him turn his head. Suddenly something _whumped_ into his chest and sent him sprawling. He was aware of a pressure forcing itself against him. He looked down and smiled, his one visible eye sparkling joyously.

"Good morning, sweetie," he said to the woman pressed against his chest.

"Good morning yourself," Miranda Lotto replied as she turned her eyes up to meet his. "You almost missed the ceremony."

He gently stroked her hair and laughed a reply, "I know I know. It was Kro-chan's fault. He didn't wake me."

Miranda gave him that 'you-should-really-know-better' look before telling him in a matter-of-fact voice, "It's not Krory-san's responsibility to look after you, Lavi."

His smile faltered. "Ah c'mon Miranda. Don't be like that…" he whined pitifully.

Miranda covered her mouth with a hand and giggled at Lavi's reaction to her comment. Upon seeing her action, Lavi's face once again broke into a wide grin.

"These three years have done wonders for you, haven't they?" he asked her in a quiet voice.

She stared back at him, somewhat surprised at the question. "Well yes, I guess they have. I don't second guess myself on everything I do. Confidence is something I do not need to worry about now."

Lavi leaned down and kissed her gently. "Good," was all he said. They both stood and moved off to greet Krory.

"Oi, Kro-chan, how about you wake me up next time too?"

Krory sighed as Lavi used his nickname. "I am not responsible for your welfare, Lavi."

Miranda giggled again and nudged Lavi, "See, I told you so."

Lavi just rolled his eye and glanced around the room again. He saw Kanda entering through a door near the back, and Lavi waved his arms like a madman, trying to get his attention. Kanda caught this buoyant movement in the corner of his eyes and turned his head to glare at Lavi, but he still made his way over to the small group. On the way, he grabbed a tray of Soba that was sitting on a buffet table set up near the center of the room.

"Has anybody seen Linali this morning," Lavi questioned when Kanda had finally taken a seat at the table they had moved to.

"No," answered Miranda and Krory at the same time.

"Yes," Kanda stated calmly. "She's down there again," he stated simply, as if expecting everyone to know where 'down there' was. The thing was, however, that they did. They all knew that right now Linali was doing what she had done everyday for the past three years when she was at the headquarters. She was visiting _his_ grave.

"Ah, here she is now," Krory said softly as said woman walked through the same double doors that Lavi had come in through. Her dark hair was let down today, and she was using no hair tie. She approached them slowly, with a pondering look on her face. Lavi caught her expression as she reached them and took a seat.

"Something wrong, Lina?" he asked, shortening her name. Lavi had a nickname for almost everyone. For Linali, he had merely gone with cutting the last few letters off the end.

"There's something strange with Allen's grave. There has been for about a month now. You know the mist the was always around his grave?" Linali asked them. Upon seeing the multiple heads bob, she went on, "Well, it's been gone since the beginning of this month. I didn't think anything of it before, but today…" she just shook her head and continued, "It just felt really different. It was as if something_really_ changed, rather than the mist just vanishing." They were all a little surprised at this statement. The mist that had shrouded Allen's grave had appeared about a week after he was buried. It was thick and difficult to see through. It wasn't natural, that much everyone could tell. It never dissipated and just hung there. It almost seemed to be _protecting_ Allen's residence of death.

Linali sighed, but her face soon broke into a smile. "Now's no time to question those things though. We have new exorcists to greet today." She took in the decorated hall and the gathered members of the Black Religious Organization. "What was it, two of them? That's uncommon."

"Yeah. It is. I think the last group that came in as a pair was Gramps and I," Lavi commented. "I also here that they both already know how to invoke their Innocence effectively."

"More than I can say for when I started," Krory stated miserably.

"Don't feel down Kro-chan. In fact, you did know how to invoke your Innocence, you just didn't know _what_ it was."

Krory looked up and growled, "I told you to stop calling me that, Lavi."

Lavi's emerald eye glinted malevolently, "And since when has that stopped me, Kro-chan." Arystar sighed; he knew Lavi was right. It would take a lot more than just a verbal command to get him to stop.

"Shut it you two," Miranda scolded, "Komui's starting the program. All eyes turned towards the small stage that had been raised at the front of the great room. The purple-haired supervisor stood up to the microphone and began to speak, his voice was steely calm and yet warm at the same time.

"First off, let me thank you all for coming. Though of course, since this means that you get a break from work, I am sure that none of you would miss the chance at a day off. I myself know just how great it feels to take a slight interlude in my work."

At this comment someone from the science branch called out from the crowd, "That's because you're always running away from it and leaving it to us!" The room erupted into chuckles and laughter. Komui smiled, his eyes sparkling.

"Who was that? Was that you Johnny?" he asked a man with curly hair and large glasses set upon his nose. The man gulped. Komui noticed this and comforted him, "Don't worry, I am not gonna do anything to you. It was a true statement, anyways. But the pleasantries aside, we all know why we are here. Today we are receiving two brand new exorcists who have just recently realized their own power. And now I believe it is time to welcome them. Be sure to make them feel at home. First, is Leslie Sotly. A young woman who looked to be slightly older than Linali stepped forward to a tumultuous roaring of the crowd. She was a beautiful woman. The black exorcist suit she wore displayed her perfect curves and her shoulder length, dark red-gold hair glistened brilliantly under the bright lights. Bangs mostly covered the right half of her face, but the left side more than made up for it. Her eyes were ice blue, though the color did not seem to dampen the warmth that they pulsed out. A dark gray jacket was thrown over her uniform and she wore a leather belt around her waist. On her right hip a gun holster could be seen, complete with gun. She smiled brightly at the crowd, revealing a row of perfect, straight, white teeth.

She took her place on the stage as Komui stepped froward once again and raised his hand for silence. He looked over at the other figure standing beside the steps that lead up to the stage. The figure was shuffling anxiously from foot to foot, as if it were nervous. Komui looked back up and spoke again, "Next comes a young man. Alron."

The young man stepped up onto the stage boldly, acting as though he had not just been fidgeting while waiting for his name to be called. He wore a dark and tattered traveling cloak about him. The bottom edge was nothing more then jagged strips of cloth which hung uselessly from the main body. The hood was up, so his face was cast in darkness and was not visible. In his right hand was a crooked, wooden walking stick that appeared to be almost near the end of its usefulness.

His companion, Leslie walked up behind him and nudged him while she indicated the hood. He shook his head, but Leslie was having none of it. She impatiently stamped her foot and pointed, with more authority this time, at his head. Alron's shoulders visibly slumped as he reached up to the hood. As his left hand raised into the light, everyone in the room noticed the twisting, horrible scars that were caused by severe burning. It covered every inch of his hand and it was guessed that the scars continued all the up his arm. He slowly drew back the hood, revealing his face.

The sound of four exorcists gasping and the clatter as a tray of Soba hitting the floor was drowned out in the sound of hundreds of people cheering for all they were worth. Nobody noticed Kanda, Krory, Lavi, Miranda, and Linali staring up at the new arrival with looks of awe and disbelief plastered across their faces.

Sure, it wasn't an exact match. The hair was jet black and twisted in a braid that came over the shoulder, while some was left to hang down the whole way around his head. The left hand wasn't encased in a glove, nor was it shriveled and red. But it had been burnt badly, that much was clear. The left half of his face was covered with a metal mask, whose only openings was a small crescent cut out for half of the boy's mouth and a small opening for a midnight-blue eye to stare out of. His right eye was silver and gleamed in the false sunlight.

Sure, it wasn't an exact match.

But the way he smiled at the applause. The way he laughed when Leslie whispered something in his ear and Komui shook his hand enthusiastically. Just the way he moved. His face.

Those aspects were an_exact_ match. Not even twins could be similar to this extent. The only probable way that two people could be this close to exact copies of each other was if they were the same person.

The five exorcists were confused. What they were seeing was impossible. It couldn't be true. This boy. This…Alron, could not exist.

The reason for this was simple.

The boy up on stage happily soaking up the limelight was, despite the changes in appearance, exactly like, down to the smallest muscle and the barest fragment of tissue,

Allen Walker.


	9. Assault

hey guys, managed to squeeze out another. once again, sorry about the length...

reviews would be appreciated. i need to know if you guys think this story is going in the right direction. so review, please.

anyway...enjoy...

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Assault

Angry voices could be heard from inside the supervisor's office. Everybody steered clear, not wanting to get into whatever argument Komui was having now. However, there were two people who really did not know any better. And so they, foolishly, though maybe for the better, stopped outside the door and pressed the sides of their faces up against it in an attempt to listen.

"-ell is the meaning of this, Komui?!" an yell rang out. "Did you know about that exorcist before you invited him here?" Leslie and Alron, eavesdropping in on the conversation, looked at each other with worried expressions. Had they already done something wrong on the first day?

Their attention was brought back to the heated fight when another voice spoke up, this one was calm, yet it sounded slightly irritated. "No, Lavi I did not. All I knew was that they were two new exorcists with powerful Innocence. If I had known…"

"Well, it's too late to do anything else now. They're here, and they've been officially accepted as exorcists," the cold voice seemed to ice down the flames of the argument.

"Kanda's right, everyone," a female voice spoke out. It sounded troubled by something. "Komui-nii, you really didn't mean to upset anyone did you?"

"Of course not. Why would I? I would never mock…him…" this last word was spoken with quiet reverence. The two new exorcists exchanged puzzled glances. Who were they talking about? And how did Komui mock 'him'?

The cold, emotionless voice came back, "Well, now that they have heard a good bit of this conversation, how about we invite the new exorcists themselves in?"

The door was suddenly flung open and Leslie and Alron fell in, flat on their faces. They both sat up and looked around with innocent, 'please-don't-kill-us' looks on their faces.

A red-haired man with a intricate headband running under his hairline and wearing an eye-patch spoke jokingly to them, "You know, if you're gonna eavesdrop, at least try and pretend you're not. It could come in handy when somebody figures out what you're doing." The man had his arm around a dark brown haired woman, who just nodded at them and smiled, agreeing with what the man had said.

"Leslie, Alron," Komui said, "meet the senior exorcists here at headquarters." He indicated the redhead, "Lavi Bookman." The man grinned and saluted. Komui then moved to the girl in Lavi's arms, "Miranda Lotto." She nodded at them again. "Over there, is Arystar Krory." The tall man bowed slightly. "The cold one here, is Kanda." The man had long black hair and eyes that looked as though they alone could stop global warming. "And this here," he said while hugging a woman with long, dark hair, "is my adorable little sister Linali."

"N-nice to meet you all," Alron stuttered out. As he spoke, all of the exorcists eyes trained on him. Them almost seemed to be…summing him up?

"It is a pleasure to meet all of you," Leslie stated as she stood. She went around the room and offered her hand to them all. Everyone but Kanda took her up on the offer. Alron soon followed her example, but when they shook hands with the young boy, there was a certain stiffness about it. He must have really done something wrong.

"Now, perhaps you can explain to us why you were eavesdropping on our conversation?" Komui asked as he flopped down in his chair.

"Well, we were passing by the office and heard you guys arguing, so we thought we would check it out," Leslie explained.

Komui sighed and looked up at them before stating in a very serious voice, "Being too curious can get you killed on a mission. Don't let you're mind wander. Ever." This sudden warning took both the new exorcists by surprise. "Either way, it's a good thing you are here. I was just about to send for you anyway." Leslie and Alron gave him questioning looks. "We need to know about your past and how you discovered you're Innocence. Plus, we all need to see what you Innocence are."

Leslie sighed. "It's gonna be a long story, so you might wanna make yourselves comfortable."

Lavi slid to the floor, back up against the wall and Miranda cuddling in his lap. Krory pulled out a chair and took a seat. Linali propped herself up on her brother's desk while Kanda just continued to stand in the corner. Leslie herself sat down, and Alron quickly followed, his hood once again in place.

Leslie prepared herself, it wasn't very often she had to let others know of her past. "Well, first thing's first. We discovered our Innocence about one month ago. We were assaulted by the creatures you call Akuma, and our Innocence activated. It didn't make much sense to us at the time, but eventually some of your finders found us and informed us as to what exactly happened and what our Innocence was. For some reason they kept muttering something about Alron resembling somebody they knew. Alec…Alex…?"

"Allen. Allen Walker," Linali spoke quietly from the desk. She was turned away from the two exorcists and was staring at the ground. They could have sworn that they had seen her shudder, but when she turned around there was a smile adorning her face as she spoke lightly, "Please, go on."

"Well, I think that pretty much covers the whole 'how did you learn about you're Innocence' thing. Now next, is finding out about us." She looked over at her companion and an unspoken understanding seemed to pass between them. "I'll tell you about myself first, then I'll let Alron explain his past.

"You see, the country where we come from isn't the best, and right now, there's a civil war going on. The west turned against the east over some petty dispute over land. War soon started, and soldiers were hard to come by, seeing as how everyone dying was from the same country. Shortly after the war began, a draft was instituted. That certainly brought more troops in, but still no where near enough. The leaders of the two armies then decided to go through with the most horrible plan that has ever hatched in a human's mind. They started picking up_children_ and making them fight." Surprised faces met Leslie's comment. She continued, "Alron and I are two such victims. They scooped me up when I was fourteen. They caught me while I was coming home from school. I didn't stand a chance.

"They quickly placed me into the frontlines." Leslie visibly shuddered as the memories hit her. "I had to kill or be killed. It was not a place that fourteen year old girl should have ever been. I somehow managed to survive my first four years. When I became eighteen, they judged me worthy and skilled enough to be put in charge of an elite division of troops that was designed to infiltrate enemy lines and destroy them from within. It was while I was serving as this company captain that I met Alron. We became fast friends, seeing as how our past was very similar. We saved each others' lives too many times to count." She turned to her companion, who looked at her with mismatched eyes full of painful remembrance. She reached out and squeezed his hand. "Though I am pretty sure that he has the higher count. And if not, he certainly has saved me from far worse than I have saved him." Here she gave a sorrowful look at Alron's left arm. "Anyway, both of us continued serving until a year ago, when we decided it was time to leave. We fled from the army. They hunted for us and placed bounties on our heads, but we managed to evade them until the whole Akuma incident a month ago. Then we came here. That's my story. Sastified?" he asked Komui.

He looked at her before asking her, "How old are you?"

"Twenty-one," came the simple reply.

Komui nodded and turned his attention to the young man sitting next to Leslie. "Now, Alron, it's your turn."

Alron looked up and took a large breath. "Well, as Leslie told you, my situation is much the same as hers. I was taken from the streets at an early age. Ten, to be exact." Alron looked around at the various faces that were turned to him. Miranda, Lavi, Krory, Komui, and Linali had looks of horror on their faces. A ten year old being forced to fight in the front lines? Alron sighed and continued, "Just like Leslie here, they threw me straight into the fighting. When I was fifteen, two things happened. The first is that I was caught in a bombing raid. I survived but lost almost all my memory before that instant. The only thing I could remember were vague impressions of battles. Blood, screaming, and death. That was about it. What little I am able to tell you is gathered from the incomplete record they had on me at the headquarters. The only reason that I know my first name in because of these." He pulled out a worn set of dog tags from within his shirt. "They don't even give my last name, just my first. They were there when I awoke from my injuries, so I at least knew that was my name. The second thing that happened was that, once I recovered, I was sent to the elite forces unit the Leslie was captain of. As she previously stated, we became fast friends. Since I had just gone through memory loss and had no clue what in the hell was going on, she became a pillar of support for me. And also as she previously said, we saved each other's lives many times, so we have a strong bond of trust. Any questions?"

"Yes, what happened to your arm?" Lavi questioned before Komui could speak.

Alron's winced but slid back his sleeve, revealing burn scars the whole way up to the shoulder. Linali suppressed a shudder at the sight. Alron spoke in a saddened, quiet tone, "This happened when I was sixteen, around a year after I was moved to the elite unit. We were on a mission. The simple fact is, someone betrayed us. We were led into a trap. We infiltrated a building, and were then locked as they set fire to it. Most of us managed to escape unscathed but our captain," he here looked at Leslie, who looked at the ground, "got trapped inside a room. I went back for her. Not really sure just what happened, all I know is that I came out dragging her with me and my arm was severely burned. I was lucky to keep use of it, however. Any more questions? Oh, and before you ask," Alron interjected when he saw Komui's mouth open to form an inquiry, "I am eighteen."

Komui snapped his mouth shut and thought over all the information that they had just received. He looked back up at the two new exorcists sitting before him. Both had had a very difficult life up to joining the Organization, though Komui couldn't really say that it was gonna get any better. "Well, now that we know about how you discovered your Innocence and your pasts, we should move to what you're Innocence actually is." He indicated Leslie, "You'll go first again, Ms. Sotly."

She stood up slowly. Leslie reached to her hip and drew her pistol. It was a black revolver, six-shot. She twirled it absent-mindedly on her finger. "Got anything for me to actually practice against?" she questioned.

Komui raised an eyebrow at her before pressing an almost buried button on his desk. The whole back wall of the room split and slid off to the sides, revealing several targets that appeared to be Akuma. "Those are made from actual Akuma skin. Only Innocence will damage them."

Leslie wondered for a second why anybody would keep a target range inside their office, though from what she had seen of Komui, somehow it didn't surprise her. She shook her head and spread her legs as she held the gun out in front of her. Her form was very relaxed, and everyone in the room realized that she must have been very at ease with firing a gun.

"Innocence, activate," she said. Suddenly a light flared from the gun, and small veins of silver that curved gracefully shot out and spread over the pistol. The gun grew to twice its original size, though the handle didn't change. The barrel became enclosed in a box-like casing, much like a modern day pistol, only much larger. Her weapon now resembled General Cross Marian's 'Judgement' pretty closely. Leslie took quick aim and tightened her finger on the trigger. To everyone besides Leslie and Alron, the lack of a large crack that they had been expecting surprised them greatly. The gun was large, so of course they assumed that they would be a loud sound from the shot being fired. They were wrong. It was suppressed, so much that if that had been any more than two rooms away, they probably wouldn't have been able to distinguish it from somebody shifting slightly.

The shot tore through target, shredding the thin material. Small pieces floated to the floor, resembling confetti tossed through the air for a celebration. Leslie then turned her attention to the rest of the targets, and annihilated them with just as much accuracy and proficiency. When she destroyed the last target, she spun her pistol on her finger as it shrank to normal size and re-holstered it in a rather showy display. She turned back to the others in the room, and took a step back when she noticed their shocked faces, except Kanda, whose face was still emotionless, and Alron, who was smiling widely.

Lavi was the first to recover. Her looked up at her and spoke somewhat reverently, "That's a helluva good aim you got there. Not to mention the fact that for just being discovered recently, your Innocence is extremely powerful. Tack that on to the unlimited bullet capacity and you got yourself one hell of a weapon there.

Leslie's eyes glowed with the praise as she timidly said, "Thank you, Lavi-san."

Linali turned to her next. She eyed the now un-invoked Innocence before asking, "Why is it so quiet? That is a large gun when invoked, so shouldn't the noise be loud as well?"

"See, that's the thing. Innocence transforms to satisfy its conformer's needs, doesn't it?" Once she got the head nod that meant she was dead on, she continued, "Do not forget, both Alron and I were in an elite division that's goal was to _infiltrate_ enemy strongholds. That means that we needed to be stealthy. I assume that is why the noise is so low for such a large gun. Though why it utilized a trait that I had already abandoned by leaving the military, I do not know."

"Perhaps," interjected Komui, "it is because that is the way you fight best, so the Innocence sensed this and incorporated a trait that would aid you in this style. Either way, it is very impressive. I can now see what our finders meant when they reported that it was powerful. Now," said Komui as he turned to the young man still sitting against the wall, "it would be your turn Alron."

The eighteen year old stood slowly, his cloak shifting silently about him. He lowered his hood, once again revealing his deep black braid. He reached behind him and grasped his walking stick form its leaning position against the wall. He brought it back out in front of him. He gripped it in his right hand. He held his arms straight out and crossed them. His staff was now parallel to the ground. He spoke up in a quiet voice, "Stand back please." Leslie backed up. A lot. The others took this as a sign and moved back as well. Alron directed his mismatched gaze back to his walking pole. He took a deep breath and began in a slightly hoarse voice, "Innocence," his staff began to glow faintly, "activa-"

A klaxon that blared loudly stopped him mid word. He looked up, confusion written all over his face as he dropped his arms. The glow surrounding his staff faded and vanished. He looked at the worried faces of the senior exorcists and the branch head Komui. "What's going on," he shouted in order to be heard over the alarm."

"Akuma," yelled Lavi and he stood and pulled Miranda to her feet. They both rushed from the room. Krory sprinted after them.

Linali and Kanda both began to move towards the door. As she passed them however, Linali laid her hand on Leslie's shoulder and sweetly asked them, "you guys coming? You are _exorcists_ now. It looks like its finally time for you to get into a real fight with your enemy." With that, she was gone, following Kanda as they ran down the corridor towards the front doors. Leslie and Alron stood around, confused. It was their first day, and they were already under attack?

Komui sighed loudly. "Listen up, exorcists. My first given assignment to you is to aid in the elimination of the Akuma assault on our headquarters. Go!" Leslie and Alron made up their minds and turned as one and rushed out of the office. Komui watched them go. When he was sure that they were gone, he let his face slide into a weary expression. He knew that there would really be no threat with so many exorcists at headquarters, but the whole war with them was beginning to take its toll on him. However, the Akuma were so weak after the death of the Millennium Earl that even brand new exorcists who had only experienced initial Invocation could defeat them.

At that point however, a large tremor shook the tower, scattering papers from Komui's crowded desk onto the floor, where they joined that already massive pile of things long forgotten. Komui stood, wondering what had happened. He left his office and moved down the corridor to a large window that offered a clear view of the grounds in front of the building.

His face slackened in horror at what he saw. These Akuma…they were strong. They were not the weak ones that they had been fighting for three years.

"Dear God," he whispered quietly. Bodies were already strewn over the lush grass. As Komui watched, an exorcists was flung high into the air, he crashed through one of the tower's many windows, sprinkling sparkling glass down unto those still standing, making it appear as though they were fighting in the dead of winter.

Komui fell to his knees as the fight continued. His mind ran through all the exorcists that were no either dead or dying, and his mind centered on the two new exorcists. Leslie and Alron. His gut tightened.

_Have I sent those two to their deaths?_ Komui Lee's mind wondered through the darkness of guilt and sorrow. _What have I done?_

Outside, the fierce battle continued. Clangs of weapons and the screams of injured mixed violently into the air.

* * *

Leslie and Alron burst through the large, wooden double doors that served as the main entrance to the Black Religious Organization Headquarters. The sight before shocked them. Bodies were strewn haphazardly throughout the landscape. The Akuma were tearing into the exorcists, who had obviously come underestimating the creatures. 

Leslie and Alron quickly recovered from their stupor, however. They were both veterans of a war very similar to this, so they soon took the carnage in step. Leslie looked over, her ice-blue eyes blazing. Alron looked intently back, silver right eye gleaming and deep blue left brooding. They nodded in unison. Leslie drew her pistol, muttered a few words and it grew to its invoked state. She began to pick out targets, storing them in her memory.

Alron hefted his staff, it glowed faintly again, but there was no obvious Invocation on his part. They looked into each other's eyes once more. They reached their arms out towards each other, Alron standing on the right with his left, Leslie on the left with her right. They clasped pinkies, a sign that they promised to come back out of this alive, a tradition that they started ever since Alron had saved Leslie from the fire that had left him scarred.

Then they turned back to the battle. Yelling, they pitched themselves into the fray, gun blazing non-stop and staff swiping at anything within its range.


	10. Two Invocations, Shattered Remembrance

Hey guys, ban been lifted, though because of school and such i can't garuntee any faster updates. Alright, well, i know this is probably not the best of times to post a new chapter, seeing as how everyone is probably celebrating and such, but i wanted to get something out before Christmas.

Anyway, reviews would be appreciated. once again, need to know if you guys like the story or think i need to change something.

Merry Christmas, and enjoy...

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Two Invocations and Shattered Remembrance

i. The First Invocation

Alron was thrown hard against the ground. He skidded through the mud and stopped not too far from the dangerous edge of the tall precipice. He gave it a wary glance as he climbed shakily to his feet. His new exorcist uniform was now torn and dirtied, causing it to match his cloak well. He gritted his teeth as he turned himself back to the battle raging in front of the tall tower of headquarters. It was not going well.

Exorcists lay everywhere. Some were broken and clearly would not be rising to fight ever again. Others were wounded horribly and most likely not be able to do anything but lay bed-ridden for months and maybe even years. Approximately only twenty exorcists were left standing, including Leslie and himself. The five senior exorcists were each racking up huge numbers of kills against the enemy. Even with their skill, however, Alron could tell that if this kept up, the headquarters would fall to the Akuma. He spotted Leslie halfway across the grounds, blasting away with her pistol at anything that moved. As Alron watched she was confronted by one particular Akuma who seemed to be able to dodge her shots. It turned into a showdown between the two.

But Alron didn't have time to continue watching his companion fight. He had to deal with the Akuma that were closing in on him. He rose fully while supporting himself on his staff. _Shit, _he thought with a bitter smile, _maybe it's time I actually invoked._ He looked back up, only to see a fist swinging for his face. He dodged, rolling out to the right and bringing his staff up in a strike as he brought his feet under him. Overall, his parry move was quite effective and gave him a slight boost into the air as he completed it. His staff struck the Akuma alongside the head, cracking it wide open and destroying the Akuma instantly. _Or then again, maybe not._

"Is that you Innocence, boy?" one of the Akuma asked.

He smirked as he turned around to face it. "Why, yes, it is. Why do you ask?"

"Because it's pathetic. If your invocation merely makes your staff glow like a nightlight and makes it just barely strong enough to destroy us, you are one weak exorcist."

The smile did not die from Alron's lips, however. "Be aware, Akuma. I said this is my Innocence. I never once spoke about my having invoked it."

The Akuma's face was confused for a second before a rage took hold of it. He shouted, "Do not mock us, you bastard! We will crush you!" He motioned with his hand, and all the Akuma surrounding him shot off in Alron's direction.

"Well shit. This is not gonna be fun," Alron whispered quietly to himself. He sprinted toward the approaching Akuma, catching them by surprise by appearing before they had expected him. He struck out at several with his staff, leaving behind large dents on limbs and torsos. Not a single Akuma fell however. _What?_

"Surprised, exorcist?" the lead Akuma asked as he appeared in front of Alron. Alron looked up at him with eyes that screamed 'oh shit' before the Akuma struck him across the face. For about the seventh time that day, Alron went skipping across the ground. He lost his grip on his staff and it ended up a good five feet from him. Alron recovered enough to begin to reach for it, but the Akuma placed his foot harshly upon the wooden pole. "Your shitty Innocence will not hurt us. Those you destroyed before were nothing more than Level 2's. Weaklings. We are Level 3's. You do not have a hope against us." The Akuma kicked Alron in the side, causing the young man to double up on his stomach as he coughed up blood.

The Akuma leaned over and procured Alron's Innocence. "So, your Innocence is even so pathetic that it does not burn me to touch it? How sad."

Alron shifted on the ground and glared up at the Akuma as he spoke in a hoarse voice, "Ba…Bast…ard…"

"He he he. The little exorcist can't do anything. Watch helplessly as I shatter your Innocence!" With that, the Akuma took the staff in between his thumb and index finger and began to squeeze them together. The wooden stick began to bend and strain.

Alron gave a small laugh despite the blood dribbling from his mouth. He spoke quietly, "Innocence…" The glow around the staff flared back to life, brighter than ever. It cast long shadows on each of the Akuma surrounding the fallen boy. "…activate." The Akuma who was holding Alron's Innocence screamed in agony as his face was pierced open. He dropped the now transformed staff. It fell directly into Alron's outstretched hand. He spun it over his head and then held it out, pointing it at the remaining Akuma. Near its tip, a gigantic, curving blade was firmly attached.

"A scythe. That's your Innocence!" the gathered Akuma screamed.

"I told you before, I had yet to invoke. I have a special ability. It is kinda like half-invoking. I can let some of my Innocence's power into its original form without fully releasing it. Now come on!" Alron yelled as he jumped at them. He brought the scythe down as he landed, splitting three Akuma vertically. He immediately brought it up in a horizontal attack that took out everything in a semicircle around him. Next he spun around and caught an Akuma's attack on the inside of his blade. He threw his arm down, which took the Akuma off balance. The scythe came up in a one handed slash that cleaved the enemy open from crotch to crown. The Akuma were amazed; his speed was inhuman for using something so large as that scythe! Alron returned to his normal posture and glanced back over his shoulder at the amassed monsters.

His tattered cloak waving gently in the breeze, the metal mask glinting evilly on his face, the huge scythe he wielded with insane speed, and the intense silver of his right eye and the midnight-deep blue of the other while he glared harshly at them all made him appear to be an image from hell. In fact, that was exactly what he looked like: _a god of death_.

ii. The Second Invocation

Leslie was fighting just as hard as Alron. Of course, since her Innocence was a completely different style, she had both an advantage and a disadvantage that her compatriot did not. The advantage was that she could bring down enemies before they could reach her, giving her a much better chance at avoiding personal injury. However, the disadvantage played out much to the same effect. If an enemy did manage to get past her defenses, she was going to have one hell of a time defeating them in close combat. Unfortunately, that was what was happening right now.

The Akuma that Alron had seen had managed to get close enough to Leslie to be able to negate her advantage of range. She was now helplessly twisting and dodging as he struck out at her without restraint. His hands seemed to grow each time they narrowly missed smashing into her thin frame.

The Akuma laughed maniacally, "Pathetic, exorcist. My ability is your worst nightmare." With that his hands grew to twice their normal size and both struck out at her at the same time. She didn't have the time or the ability to dodge. The left hand clipped off her right shoulder, while the right one landed full force in her gut, knocking the wind straight from her lungs. She flew backwards and landed harshly on her backside. Groaning, she pulled herself to her feet. She winced as pain shot through her shoulder. While the blow had only grazed her compared to one that had landed in her stomach, it still burned like a red-hot iron. _Dammit. That's gonna throw off my aim._

She looked back up at the Akuma now grinning sinisterly at her as his hands reverted to their previous size. _So he is able to make his body parts grow. _She snorted. _Well, I don't think he could make his ego grow any larger._ An idea began to form in her mind. She had always been a sharp shot. All she needed was one opening to hit this guy where it hurt and cripple his ability.

Leslie suddenly launched herself at the Akuma, aiming a swift kick at his leg. The creature rotated out to the right to avoid it, and then continued the spin and brought an oversized fist around to meet with her face. She barely had time to bring her right arm up to defend herself before the shot connected, knocking her across the field. She hit hard on her right shoulder. _Damn, I blocked with the right and landed on it too. After it was hit with the earlier blow, that probably was not the best thing to do._ The pain that forked down from it confirmed her thoughts. She rose shakily to her feet. _Okay, so full-frontal attacks won't work._ Leslie looked around, trying to spot something to help her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the Akuma approaching her. In order to stall for more thinking time, she raised her pistol and fired a couple of shots.

This time, he didn't bother dodging like he had earlier. This time he just moved his hand in front and caused it to grow. The plating on its back also enlarged. The bullets bounced off harmlessly. The Akuma smirked at her, believing that he had the ultimate advantage. He did not realize that his actions had just given Leslie the weakness she could use to defeat him.

Leslie surveyed the field again, now with something definite in mind to search for. She spotted what she was looking for. A twisted piece of metal broken off from the tower. _Perfect._ Leslie then looked down at her gun. She twitched it, causing the circular chamber that normally housed bullets to spring open and out. She reached down and touched the bottom bullet chamber and the one next to it, causing them to glow faintly. She flipped the chamber shut again and turned back to the Akuma.

She relaxed her stance. This was going to take some seriously excellent shooting on her part. She half-closed her eyes, allowing herself to slip into a trance. Leslie breathed slowly out her nose, and then burst into action. The gun came up and leveled out with the Akuma. She triggered three shots before moving the gun off to aim at the slab of metal. There she gently squeezed the trigger two times. The shots, the ones that she had altered, hit the metal and ricocheted off at an angle that set them on a collision course with the Akuma.

The Akuma himself, seeing the first round of shots, repeated its earlier blocking method, and the bullets were deflected. However, when he heard the sound of two more shots and saw them bounce off the piece of metal, he flung his other hand out to deflect, seeing as how the first was occupied with blocking the first sequence of bullets. His arms were now crossed, leaving his head open and defenseless.

Leslie took full advantage of this and brought the pistol up and on a clear line in between the creature's eyeballs. She fired two rounds. The Akuma's eyes widened when he realized that he had been set-up. He tried to bring his hands up, but they were way too slow and would never make it in time. The bullets neared his face…

And flashed right past without even grazing the flesh of the Akuma. Leslie's stunned look matched her thoughts. _How…How the hell did I miss? I never miss! What the hell's going on? _Her question was soon answered as she noticed that the Akuma looked strange; well, stranger than it did before. The Akuma's body still seemed the same, with its hands growing smaller now that the threat had passed. But the head. The head was different. It was…_smaller._ A cold pit settled in Leslie's gut. _His ability…it isn't just growing, it's shrinking too._ Her mind kicked into overdrive trying to come up with a counter-tactic to this turn of events. She never got the chance to actual formulate anything because of the Akuma that shot forward and pinned her to the ground. His hand was now large again, and effectively held down her right arm and legs.

The Akuma grinned as it spoke, "Now, exorcist, it ends. You can do nothing. I have your Innocence held down, and I don't think I will feel compelled to release it anytime soon."

Leslie struggled slightly. She still had one more trick up her sleeve, but she didn't want to use it. However, if she didn't, she could die right here and now and it would be put to waste in the first place. She was balancing on the brink of indecision, unsure of what to do, when a flash from across the field caught her eye. She turned her head to see Alron standing amongst a crowd of Akuma, his scythe glinting mystically in the moonlight.

_That's right. I made a promise with Alron to come out of this alive. I will not let him down. Besides, if he can step up to his Invocation, than I certainly can._ Leslie pale blue eyes traced back to the face of the creature holding her down.

She spoke quietly, "You are correct, Akuma. This is the end. You have underestimated me and that will cost you." That being said, Leslie reached across her chest with her left arm. She then proceeded to force in under the Akuma's hand and into her jacket and draw out what she had hidden in a shoulder holster there. A white pistol emerged with her hand. It was the same style and type as the black one. "Innocence," she whispered silently, "activate." The revolver flared to life, growing so that is resembled the black one's shape exactly. However, it was white with gold veins arcing gracefully across its surface rather than black with silver.

The Akuma stared at her, stunned. "A…second…Innocence. Y-You bitch."

Leslie fired three shots into the Akuma's face. At that range, there was no dodging, just death. The creature dissipated, and Leslie stood, brushing herself off as she did so. She looked around, noticing that whatever Akuma were left were beating a hasty retreat. They were few of them left. However, the exorcists had not fared much better. Aside from Leslie, Alron, and the senior exorcists, there were no more then eight standing. Bodies were everywhere, and the groaning of the wounded polluted the air heavily.

Leslie sighed and holstered both of her pistols, she was going to have a hell of a lot of explaining to do to Komui about that little trick. He would be pissed that she hadn't mentioned that she had two Innocence before.

She looked over to where Alron was standing, his now-deactivated Innocence hanging loosely by his side. He glanced at her and gave her a smile as he began to walk to her. He reached her and looked over her, checking for injuries. Seeing none, he nodded as if sastified. Leslie just grinned at him and pulled him into a tight embrace. His arms reached around her back and squeezed back. After several moments, Leslie pulled away and looked into Alron's eyes.

"I saw you had to invoke," she said.

He smirked at her as he replied, "And I saw you had to as well." She blushed and turned away.

When she looked back she had a slightly worried expression playing over her features. "How angry do you think everyone will be?"

He laughed, "I don't think they'll be too angry. Mostly just surprised. Don't worry about it." He turned back to the battle-torn field. "This whole battle did not go well. Obviously, the Organization was unprepared and came in underestimating. Hopefully all the fights in the future don't end up like this." He sighed, "We had better go help out those who weren't quite as fortunate as us."

Leslie nodded and they set off across the field. Before they could actually reach the first victim, however, a piercing wail tore through the air. Alron and Leslie looked at other in surprise. Were the Akuma back? They took off across the grounds, heading towards the source of the scream. As they ran, they activated their Innocence. They quickly came across a group of surviving exorcists huddled in one area.

Leslie and Alron exchanged worried looks before deactivating their Innocence. Among the forms gathered there they noted the senior exorcists. They rushed over to the group to see what the commotion about. They saw a single figure on their knees at the lip of a large crater. Inside the crater itself, the ground was charred and black, and smoke curled gently from the sloping walls. The kneeling person was the one who had cried out. As Leslie and Alron got closer, they noticed long dark hair and a pair of black boots encasing the lower legs.

It was the senior exorcist, Linali Lee.

Leslie leaned over to the red-headed man standing near the woman and asked, "Lavi-san, what's wrong?"

Lavi looked back at her with green eyes full of sorrow, and then his eyes caught sight of Alron behind her and widened in surprise, as if he was looking at someone who should not have been there. Then he seemed to realize who it was because his eyes took back the hue of sadness. He looked back at Linali as he spoke quietly, "This crater is where the grave of an exorcist was. It was destroyed during the assault."

"But I thought that when exorcists died their bodies were burned to prevent the spread of the Akuma?"

"True," Lavi said. He turned and looked Leslie in the face as Alron bent down to inspect the crisped remains of the grave. "Tell me, do you two know of the Fall of the Earl?"

Leslie nodded her head tentatively, "A little. We know that an exorcist destroyed the Earl, and gave his life doing so."

"Not entirely true. You see, that exorcist was named Allen Walker. Your friend there bears an uncanny resemblance to him. But Allen did not give his life defeating the Earl. He gave it protecting her," he indicated Linali, "the woman he loved." Leslie's eyes widened. "She loved him back, though she didn't realize until too late. And seeing as how he had killed the Earl and weakened the Akuma immeasurably, Komui decided to give him a proper burial. What remains of it is what you see before you. Obviously, Linali is none to happy that her love's grave, along with his body, has been destroyed. That's what's wrong."

Leslie stood in thoughtful silence as Alron leaned over and touched the still smoking earth. When his fingers made contact, it felt as if he had been shocked. A tingling started in his fingers and lanced up his arm, intensifying as it went. When it reached his shoulder, it was unbearably painful. But it wasn't done. He screamed in pain as it made its way to the base of his skull, and then up and over. In the center of his forehead, it split into two separate tendrils that shot out, one to each eye.

They struck, and he was blinded by an intense white light. He managed to make out something moving through the whiteness, and he reached out to it. He recoiled, however, when he saw what it was. A gigantic left hand was reaching for him. It seemed to be made of a black, leather-like material with huge claws for fingers. He began to back away, but the hand was far too fast.

As it closed around him, the vision shattered, roughly thrusting Alron back into reality. He lay on his back, confused and exhausted. He felt his consciousness slipping as darkness nibbled at the edges of his vision. He saw some people leaning worriedly over him, speaking in urgent, concerned voices. He couldn't make sense of anything he heard or saw however. The black that had been fighting at the outer reaches of his peripheral vision took over the rest of his vision and his brain shut down. He slipped blissfully into unconciousness.


	11. Phantom Hands and Changes in Cosmetics

Hey guys, i'm still alive. sorry i haven't updated for awhile, but this chapter is longer then the previous three, and the first two weeks back to school were mid-term weeks, so that didn't help updating at all.

As always, please review. Oh, and i would like to know what you guys think of Alron and Leslie, like em, hate em?

Thanks, and enjoy...

* * *

Phantom Hands and Changes in Cosmetics

One would think that to be in a war would prepare one for loss. That it would teach one to harden his or her heart and not let anyone else in. That way, when others did die, it would not cause nearly as mush pain as it could have.

Yet, even though she had been picked up at the age of fourteen and thrust into brutal fighting, Leslie Sotly had had a difficult time walling up her emotions and her heart. So, here was the result. She was sitting in a leather-upholstered chair with a worn, wooden frame. She was bent over, her elbows resting on her knees and hands knitting together to form a small platform to rest her chin on. Her left leg was bouncing up and down nervously and her light ice-blue eyes showed a fervent worry over something.

A casual observer might believe that Leslie was nothing more than a homeless person concerned with where she was going to sleep next and what she was going to eat. Her clothes were roughed up and torn in several places. Dried blood was caked all over her, and dirt dusted her appearance from head to feet. Yes, it would be very easy to mistake her for someone so much less fortunate than the general population. But this is not why Leslie appeared the way she did. First of all, she has just come from a hard battle that has come near to claiming her life. Second, she was worried to death over somebody, which explained her eyes and manner…and where she was. For Leslie was not sitting anxiously in just any building, but rather she was sitting anxiously in what appeared to be a _hospital._

All of this came from not cutting off her emotions and resisting becoming a soulless soldier. First, she had made a friend, and then she had run away with him. Now here she was, desperately stressing over that very same person. If she had been a good little mindless grunt, she never would have been put in this situation.

The door partway down the clean, whitewashed hallway opened slowly, and a man dressed in a white coat that resembled a lab uniform more than anything else stepped from the room. Leslie quickly rose to her feet as the balding man approached her. He walked so slowly that Leslie could barely take it. _Hurry up, old man! _she screamed internally.

When the doctor finally reached her, she basically knocked him over as she grabbed his shoulders. She spoke breathlessly, "Is he ok? Please, God, tell me he's alright!"

The doctor just stared at her with dull eyes for a second before sluggishly shrugging his shoulders and turning his head slightly. He looked back up at her and said quietly, "He's fine. No physical injury has been sustained asied from a few minor scrapes and bruises." Leslie let out a breath she didn't realize she had been holding at this statement. But something was still bothering her. Something the doctor had said. _Physical damage._ That was it. The doctor had said there had been no _physical_ damage sustained. Suddenly, Leslie was overrun with another wave of worry. Alron couldn't take any more mental damage. After losing his memory his mind had never been fully stable. Leslie had learned that if that frail balance was tipped that it had profound effects on the young man.

Leslie looked the man right in the eyes. "There's a catch to this isn't there?" she asked in a hesitant voice.

The doctor sighed wearily, "Yes. The young lad has yet to wake up. We're not quite sure what's wrong, but we heard disrupted and uneven brainwaves from him. It is very possible that he has suffered an irreparable mental shock that left him in a coma status."

"Wait wait wait. You can _hear_ brainwaves?" Leslie asked incredulously.

"Well, technically, I can't. But he," the doctor indicated a man stepping from the small room behind him, "can."

The man stepped forward. He had a large build and appeared to be wearing some type of device on his ears. The man held out his hand as he smiled and introduced himself, "Noise Marie, exorcist."

Leslie shook his hand firmly, "Leslie Sotly. So you can hear brainwaves?"

The man tapped the device on his head as he spoke, "This is my Innocence. It makes my hearing even more sensitive than it already is. This ability is what gave me the means to pick up your friend's brainwaves."

At the mention of 'your friend,' all thoughts of mystically reading someone's mental activity ceased as Leslie's mind focused on Alron. "Is he ok?" she repeated what she had asked the doctor earlier.

Marie's face seemed to pull into thought. "Well, there is definitely something wrong in his head. With the activity I picked up, it's almost as if he is fighting something. We've done all we can for now. I think you can go in and see him." Marie looked at the doctor, who in turn waved his hand dismissively. Marie smiled, "Go ahead in. If you need help, just call."

* * *

Darkness. It was everywhere. Covering every inch of everything. Alron was confused. How had he gotten here? Where had he been before getting here? He put his hands up to his head to try and subdue the pain that had begun to spread there. It was then that he realized his hands were not visible to him. He could feel them, but not see them. Something was wrong. He understood that the blackness was heavy. But how could darkness possibly be this thick? 

Alron grunted in frustration. What was he supposed to do? He didn't know where he was, why he was there, or how he had gotten there. He could see absolutely nothing; not even his own body. He thumped down into a sitting position on the ground; at least it felt like that. Though because he could not see anything, it was possible that he was not sitting at all. He shut his eyes tight, though it did not make any difference against the smothering blackness.

"Alright, alright. Calm down," he murmured quietly to himself. Even his voice seemed muffled in this place, as if the cloak of darkness was trying to conceal absolutely everything from him. "Think, think. Where was I before I got here? Think. Think, dammit!" Suddenly, the memories came flying back to him. The welcoming ceremony, the discussion in Komui's office, the fight outside the tower, and the grave. The grave. That set off a particular alarm in Alron's head, though he could not recall why.

Alron didn't have much time to think on it though, as he soon realized that it was not just memories that had come to him. Around him, starting quietly like bees humming through fields of grass, whispers began. They wrapped around him and seemed to latch themselves onto him. Everywhere they touched, it felt as if his skin were burning. He began to swipe at them, knocking them aside in an effort to free himself. But that only seemed to agitate them, as the whispering grew louder and the number and ferocity of his attackers increased.

Alron's eyes shot open as he quickly burst to his feet. He slapped at himself, swatting aside the whispers frantically. It was really beginning to hurt. And yet they still came, more and more by the second. They tried to gently speak into his ear, but he was having none of it. Alron tore off in a dead sprint. He was attempting to put as much possible distance between himself and the vicious, invisible enemies. Of course, they pursued. However, they were no longer being quiet. They were now screaming after him, telling him to come back, wailing and crying as if they're lives depended on it. _What the hell am I thinking? They can't have lives; they're not real! They're just fucking whispers!_

But Alron noticed something different as he glanced back over his shoulder in what he thought was the direction he had come from. Something was there. Something…_visible.__Don't tell that those little shits are-_ Alron never finished his thought. The whispers, now screaming even louder, had formed together into a distinguishable shape. The only one that Alron could see in this place. But it was not just the fact that they had formed together that had stopped Alron's thought; it was the form that they had taken.

It was huge, at least for what it was supposed to be. Even in the blackness that surrounded it, Alron could make out five claws clearly. Each was filed down to a razor-sharp tip. They connected to a large palm, and the whole thing seemed to be made out a black leather-like material. It was a hand. This sight triggered the missing part of Alron's memory. The grave…

The vision he had seen there. A gigantic hand seemingly made out of leather, just like the one now pursuing him. It was the same damn one! But then Alron remembered a characteristic of the one he had seen at the grave that he had not noticed on the one following him now. He looked back over his shoulder again. Whenever he turned back around, his face was contorted in sickness.

_It's a left hand too…_

Alron grunted as he continued to flee.

_Same damn one…_

* * *

Leslie was hunched quietly over Alron's unconscious form. She had been here for around twenty minutes, and the young man still had not stirred. She gently stroked his pale cheek as a sad smile graced her lips. She was worried sick over him, yet she couldn't help but to remember the first time she had met him. It was in a situation very similar to this.

* * *

An eighteen-year-old Leslie Sotly followed a fat man dressed in a green military uniform. She was feeling a bit uneasy. She had gotten a call from the general that morning to report to his office. When Leslie had arrived, she had been surprised to discover that she was being promoted. She was now going to head a special ops unit. The general had quickly thrust a bunch of files in her face and dismissed her, leaving her to choose her subordinates herself. 

It had not taken her long to pick the best suited for the job. Many of them were comrades she had fought beside before, so she knew what they were capable of first hand. But a few were new to her, so she went to meet them in person and offer them the position.

Now she was stuck behind this obese man who reeked of rotten fish and body odor. As if this wasn't enough to make her stomach churn, she was beginning to worry about meeting the soldier she had selected. Was he really good enough to gain entrance into her unit if he was here, in a hospital? Suddenly, the officer in the front of her came to an abrupt halt, almost causing Leslie to trip into him.

He waved to a door before striding away, leaving Leslie alone in the empty corridor. Somebody appeared at the other end and began to walk toward her, though from his disinterested look and the direction he appeared to be heading, she could tell he wanted nothing to do with her. Leslie opened the door slowly, not knowing what to expect.

When she stepped in, the first thing she noticed was that the room was very well lit. The blinds were open and the sun was shining in all its glory. Her eyes roamed the room, noting the almost-clean walls, the various cabinets, and the lack of medical equipment. _Guy must not be too injured, seeing as how they don't have him hooked up to anything._ Leslie sighed as she looked at the bed. But what she saw made her take a step back. She had been expecting a middle-aged man, like most of the soldiers. What she got was a young teenager staring intently at her with curious eyes. That was something else that surprised her. His eyes were mismatched. The right was silver and the left blue, and each was focused fully on her. Getting over her surprise, she coughed into her hand before returning his gaze.

"Name, soldier?" Leslie questioned. She tried to sound hard, like a commander should, but somehow the boy's age seemed to blunt her sharp edge. Silence met her question. She took a step closer, "What is your name, soldier?" she repeated. Once again, the boy sat silently watching her. Leslie Sotly had never been known for a having any amount of patience. She was now _very_ irritated. She leaned over him and gripped his shirt collar in her fists. Her eyes flashed dangerously as she spoke in a quietly vicious voice, "What…is…your…fucking…name?"

He stared at her for a second before he finally spoke, his voice cracked and raw from lack of use, "I-I…don't know…ma'am."

The reply caught Leslie off guard. He didn't know? She glared back into his eyes. "Explain yourself," she growled.

He looked down, and then back up at her. She saw a distant pain and longing in his eyes. "Ma'am, have you heard of the recent bombing of Orgart?"

Leslie nodded slightly. How could she not have heard? Orgart had been one of their most precious cities. It held tons of supplies. Food, weapons, clothes, everything had been there. And then the enemy had destroyed it. They sent a whole air force in and demolished everything. There were only a few survivors of the massive force that had resided in that city. The whole ordeal had been a crushing blow.

He swallowed, "Well, you see, ma'am, I was in that bombing. I am one of the living soldiers who had been stationed there. That is why I am here. I was recovered from the rubble of a trashed building." Leslie eyes softened a little. At such a young age, he had been caught up in one of the worst disasters one can experience. "Also," he continued, "the attack wiped my memory clean. I have absolutely no recollection of anything before I woke up here. Not even my name or age."

"Well, I can help you with part of that," Leslie said as she stood. "You appear to be approximately fifteen years old." He looked up at her with a questioning look on his face, but she ignored it as she continued, "I looked at your file. I was going to pick you to join my special ops unit. But seeing as how you are barely of age and currently incapacitated…" She spun and began to walk towards the door when his soft voice stopped her.

"You were in the same situation once, weren't you?" he questioned. "I could see it in your eyes. You were picked up at a young age, just like me." Her eyes opened wide and she whipped around to face him. But it was not his eyes that hers met. It was the barrel of a gun.

The boy was holding a pistol in his outstretched arm, and it was pointing right at Leslie's face. She knew it was over. There was no way that she could possibly draw and shoot faster than the boy could pull the trigger. She closed her eyes as the teenager spoke, "Do not consider me incapacitated merely because I am hospitalized, _ma'am._"

The gunshot was loud and echoed thoroughly in Leslie's ears. But wait, why wasn't she dead? She slowly cracked open her eyes to see that the boy was still holding the gun out, but its smoking barrel was not aimed at her. Rather, it was aimed behind her. She glanced back over her shoulder, and saw a body lying on the floor, blood pouring from a bullet wound in its neck. Leslie turned her body fully around. As she inspected the body, she gasped when she recognized the man who she had seen walking down the corridor shortly before she had entered the room.

He had a military issue knife in his hand and had obviously been going to kill her. She looked back at the boy now leaning back against a set of pillows as he fiddled with a pair of dog tags. He had just saved her life from a spy, and he was acting as if it was nothing! She rose to her feet and asked him, "Who are you?"

He looked up at her, meeting her straight gaze with his mismatched one. He held the dog tags and said in a slightly confused voice, "Well, according to these, which I just found stuffed in my uniform, my name is Alron."

"Alron?"

"Apparently."

"Well, Alron," Leslie began as she walked over to his bed. Alron flinched when she bent over him again. He half expected her to grab his shirt again. He was surprised, however, when he felt her soft, warm hands against his own. She stared deep into his eyes, and an understanding of pain and emotions passed silently between them. "I expect to see you in headquarters in three day's time, understood?"

He nodded mutely and murmured a "yes, ma'am."

Satisfied, she stood and strode to the doorway. There she turned around and smiled at him. "Thank you, Alron." He replied with a smile of his own and waved her a good-bye as she exited.

As she pulled out a small radio and began to punch in a number, her mind turned to the young boy. _Maybe, just maybe I can have a friend. Someone who isn't completely consumed in this war. One who knows how it felt to be pulled into it. Maybe…_ He mind was yanked back to reality as a voice picked up in the other end of the radio, asking what she needed.

"Ah, yes. I require a clean-up unit to dispose of a body…"

* * *

Leslie reached out and grasped Alron's hand lightly as his eyes flickered beneath their lids. "Please, Alron…come back…" her whispered plea sounded loud in the deserted room.

* * *

Linali Lee was normally not a restless girl. She was calm and collected most of the time. She was almost always levelheaded and she thought situations through before enacting any type of response to them. All in all, she had good control of her emotions and earned a good deal of respect for it. 

But now she found that her domination of her emotions was not quite as complete as she would have hoped. She lay in her bed, dressed in a loose shirt and light pair of pants, trying to force herself to sleep. No matter what she tried, though, it wasn't happening. Counting sheep, trying to clear her mind, keeping her eyes closed, nothing was working. Linali growled as she sat up and threw the covers off her body in frustration.

If she had to, she would pin this whole losing sleep thing down to what had happened today. It was not the fight that had gotten to her; she had been in plenty of those. It was what had happened during the tail end of the battle that had struck a chord in her heart; one that she hoped would never be plucked again. Her hand instinctively rose over her heart. _Allen's grave._ Linali looked at the window that dominated the one wall of her small room. The full moon hung brightly and silently over the deserted grounds. The moonlight gently caressed her pale skin as her dark, unbound hair flowed about her head. She closed her eyes and sighed.

The destruction of her love's resting place had greatly disturbed her. Maybe it was because she thought that after he had died, he had the right to be left in peace. Maybe it was because she saw the destruction of his grave was basically him dying again. Linali didn't know. All she did know was that the whole thing had dredged up pain she thought she had long since buried. Sharp, spiked memories of Allen and his smile now ran through her mind, piercing through the carefully constructed bubble in her mind that she had built to keep the pain away. It was now nothing more than ribbons, and the memories still were not stopping. They were now cutting away at her sanity and her current happiness.

Another sigh escaped her. Linali knew these thoughts should not have prevented her from getting sleep. But she also realized that it was _not_ just these thoughts that were weighing her mind down. The state of the new exorcist boy, Alron, also worried her.

She had been there when he had screamed out suddenly and collapsed. She had been there when he had to be literally dragged into the hospital. Linali could not help but fell slightly guilty over the young man's condition. She had been the one to step up and invite him and his friend both to fight the Akuma. Of course, at the time, nobody knew that the Akuma were no longer weak and pathetic. Linali leaned back against the wooden headboard of her bed. _Well, seeing as how I am getting no sleep here, might as well take a walk to clear my head._

She slipped from bed, and, not bothering to dress herself any more, silently opened her door and moved down the hallway.

* * *

His chest was heaving, his lungs burning, and his sight was starting to swim. At least he thought. But Alron couldn't be sure whether his sight was really going blurry and beginning to shift without his consent, or if he was just imagining it. It was too dark. He could see nothing that could confirm his suspicions, so he just assumed it was and continued running. 

The hand was gaining, its screams and wails louder than before. Soon, Alron would no longer be able to outrun it. He was already exhausted from the relentless pace the whispers had kept him going at. _Ah, shit, might as well face it._ He stopped running and turned to face the phantom hand. He breathed in deeply as the hand showed no sign of slowing down. It was going to slam into him, probably impale him and then rip him apart. Something to that effect.

Alron closed his eyes as the now-formed whispers approached nearer and nearer. Just before they could rake his skin, a voice echoed through the darkness.

"Please, Alron…come back…" it quietly pleaded. That voice…Leslie! Alron's eyes flew open to be met with something other than darkness. He was lying on a bed in a quaint, clean little room. His eyes roved across the room, taking in everything, when they rested upon the figure slumped over the bed. She was sitting in a chair with the upper torso of her body resting on the bed, sleeping lightly. A small smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. He slipped from bed and moved to the closet tucked away in a corner. There he found a pair of loose-fitting pants, which he quickly slipped on over his boxers, and another sheet that would normally go on the bed. He stepped back to Leslie and draped the sheet lightly over her softly breathing form. With that, he slipped out into the corridor and moved off through the massive tower.

He really didn't know where he was going, and he really didn't care. He needed time to think over what he had just experienced. The hand. He knew that it was important. Why else would it be in two visions he had in less than twenty-four hours? _Could just be that I have finally snapped._ He chuckled and put a hand to his left eye, only then realizing that his metal mask was missing. They must have removed it for the examination. _Now why would they do that? Well, anyway, I hope they don't care about what they saw. _He shook his head roughly as his feet continued to carry him to God only knew where.

It wasn't long in his destinationless wanderings that Alron spotted another figure down the dark corridor he was in. It was silhouetted against one of the tower's many large, glass windows, staring up and out. Alron approached soundlessly, something made easier by the fact that he was in his bare feet. When he was within five feet, he finally recognized the figure. It was Linali Lee. She was looking at the full moon.

He stepped up beside her and spoke quietly, "You make a habit of walking around in the middle of the night, Linali-san?"

She jumped approximately a foot in the air and spun to face him. Her face was shocked before she finally realized who it was. Her heart rate slowed down and her nerves calmed as she smiled at him. Alron was slightly taken aback. Why was she smiling? "How are you, Alron-kun? I heard about your condition

earlier," she asked him in a sweet voice. Inside, her mind was screaming at her._ Where did that 'kun' come from?! I only just met the kid today!_

"Well," Alron seemed a little embarrassed, "I am not too bad. I only just woke up a short while ago, and I decided to take a walk once I did." He shrugged. "So what brings the esteemed senior exorcist out in the middle of the night?"

Linali turned back to the moon, "I couldn't sleep." She did not explain further.

Alron sighed, "Is it because of what happened at the battle today?"

Linali looked at him. She was debating with herself whether to tell this young man or not. Did he really care, or was he merely just making conversation? Linali decided to put her faith in him. She spoke quietly, "Yes, it is. It was hard seeing his grave destroyed. After all he did, you think that he would be left in peace." She gazed back to the moon. "Everytime I see the full moon, it reminds of him." Linali suddenly stared at him. "Everytime I see you, it reminds me of him."

"S'cuse me?" Alron asked in disbelief. Had she really just said that?

"You, Alron-kun, remind me of Allen. You look very similar to him, as you might have heard. But there is something else about you I can't quite place. It calls my attention and pulls up memories I thought I had forgotten." Linali stopped, seemingly at a loss for words. She looked at him with eyes full of longing and pain, and she stretched out her hand and gently rested it on his shoulder.

His bare skin tingled pleasantly under her touch. She suddenly seemed to realize what she was doing, as he quickly pulled her hand away, blushing furiously. "I'm sorry," she said. "Good night Alron-kun, sleep well and recover quickly." With that, she stood and moved, wraith-like, back to her room.

Alron sat silently by the window, pondering over Linali's words and actions what they could possible mean.

* * *

"Gah!" Alron called out. "Careful dammit!" 

"Sorry, sorry. My bad," Leslie cooed. She was currently in the midst of braiding the young man's black hair. However, she had noticed something strange about it this morning. It wasn't all black. There was a small streak of white just above his left temple that ran from roots to ends. When she had seen it, Leslie had tugged just a bit too hard on the strands she was currently holding, leading to the outcry of just a few moments previous.

_Where did that come from? I know it wasn't there yesterday morning._ Something the doctor had said the evening before floated back to her, 'It is very possible that he has suffered an irreparable mental shock that left him in a coma status.' _An irreparable mental shock. Damn, it was probably enough to change his hair color. Might as well tell him about it._ "Hey Alron?"

"Yeah?"

"You know that you hair has changed right?"

"Huh?"

"I mean…" Leslie stopped and thought for a second. "Here, let me grab a mirror." She stood and quickly grabbed a small, blue hand mirror from the drawer standing in the corner. She had only been given the room this morning, and she had already stuffed it full of her possessions. Leslie returned to Alron and handed him the reflective glass. He in turn held it up and examined his reflection carefully.

When his eyes alighted upon the streak of white, they widened in surprise. "Um… Where in the hell did that come from?"

"I don't know. Maybe from the whole issue yesterday. Mental shock maybe?"

Alron didn't look convinced, but he agreed, "Yeah, maybe." He shook his head. "Anyway, you done with this yet?" he asked as he jerked a thumb toward the back of his head.

"Not yet," Leslie replied as she knelt behind him and quickly finished up the job. "Now I am."

Alron held up the mirror again. "Thanks."

"Anytime."

"I think I like the streak. What about you?"

"I think your eyes have changed as well."

"What?!"

"I just noticed it, look at your left eye." Alron did so. The metal plate that normally covered that half of his face was lying beside him on the bed; he didn't like to wear it when it was just he and Leslie. With it gone, the rest of his face was exposed, leaving the darkened skin and the few burn scars out for all to see. He didn't know why the skin there was different from the rest all over his body. But now that it was off, he had an unimpaired view of his eye. It didn't take him long to notice the difference. While his eye was still a deep blue, there was now silver specked throughout, and it all seemed to splatter out from a larger splotch near the lower right of his iris. It looked as though someone had dumped a can of silver paint in his eye.

"What the hell is going on?" he murmured quietly.

Leslie was just about to give a suggestion when a knock sounded on the door. Leslie and Alron exchanged confused looks before Leslie got up and walked over to the door. When she opened it, she was greeted by two men. One was tall and the other had vibrant red hair.

"Lavi-san, Krory-san, what are you doing here?" she asked politely.

"We're here to get you," Lavi glanced into the room and spotted Alron on the bed, currently refitting his mask back over his face, "and the shrimp over there. Komui wants you in his office pronto."

"We'll get there." Lavi and Krory nodded and set off in the direction of the Science Department. Leslie sighed and turned to Alron. He was already slipping his cloak on over his exorcist uniform. She grabbed her gray jacket from the wall and pulled it on. Next she grabbed her belt and gun holster and slung it around her waist. Once that was secured, she also strapped on her shoulder holster with her second Innocence.

Alron looked up from his position at the door, his staff already in hand. "Ready to go?"

"Yep," she replied in the voice of somebody marching to her doom.

"Don't worry about it. Komui won't care about the second Innocence."

"God, I hope you're right."

* * *

The simple truth was, Komui did care about the second Innocence, just not in the way that Leslie thought he was going to. He was, in fact, very delighted. He just kept rambling on and on about "a new recruit with two Innocence" and how "it was the first time in centuries." 

"Nii-san," Linali called to him to stop him from going on for hours, "I believe you called us here for a reason?"

"Ah yes, of course, Linali," Komui straightened and looked around his office. All the senior exorcists and the two newest exorcists were there. "I am sending all of you on a mission together."

"What?!" Lavi cried. "All of us?!"

"Yes, I believe this mission will require all the senior exorcists, along with the new recruits."

"Che. Is it really that important?"

"Yes, Kanda. You will be heading northward to a city known as Litty. In that city a new branch of exorcists is trying to establish a headquarters. I want you all to help them in setting it up. Consider this training for you two," he added, turning to Leslie and Alron. "You will depart first thing tomorrow, good luck." Everyone turned to go before he cut them off, "Oh, and take warm clothes. I hear its quite chilly up north this time of the year."

Lavi smiled bitterly, "Great, I've_ always_ loved the cold."


	12. Falling?

Hey guys, i'm back. i am really, really sorry it took me so long to update

my defense being i had to take PSSA's and then directly after it had to do 2 english projects, and 1 physics one, another book from english was also sprinkled in there

so once again, very, very sorry, please forgive me and review

enjoy...

* * *

Falling?

"Sweet Christ!" exclaimed the man as he stepped down onto the train platform. "That's cold as hell!"

"Lavi," reprimanded Miranda as she began to exit behind him, "there's no need for that kind of lan-" Miranda's words were grabbed by the wind and violently shoved back down her throat. She stumbled and gasped for breath. Lavi caught her and helped her up as he smirked at her.

"You were saying, honey?" he questioned with a joking glint in his eye. Miranda glared at him, shutting him up instantly.

"Che, troublesome," announced Kanda as he too stepped off the train.

"Isn't everything troublesome with you, Yu? I swear, if you life didn't depend on it, you would quit eating in order to cram in more training."

"I'll kill you, you stupid bunny."

"You say that all the time, and yet you never follow through. I believe this is an empty threat?"

"Arystar…" Kanda let the threat hang in the air.

Linali came next, her eyes scanning the station before she turned to motion down Leslie. Leslie promptly followed. When she had taken three steps in the direction of the senior exorcists she spun on her heel back to the still train.

"Are you coming, or are you just gonna sit there and pout until the train takes you to the next station?" she called back. She placed her hand on her hip and tapped her foot impatiently when all she got for an answer was grumbling. She pointed to the ground as she spoke through gritted teeth, "Now." She left absolutely no room for discussion.

Alron sighed heavily as he slowly and lethargically trudged down the steps off the train. While there were only three of them, he seemed to make the trip take a century. When he reached the ground Leslie cuffed him up alongside the head.

"What the hell was that for?"

"For being such a whiny little bitch, now get moving." Alron just glared at her. "Oh my God, Alron, get over it. They are better than us, ok? The Order didn't give them the rank of senior exorcists for nothing."

"But they're insane! I mean, I thought we were good, being able to handle level 3's after just entering. _But god dammit_! They outstrip us in everything! Kills! Intelligence! Teamwork! Awareness! Everything! It's inhuman! Did you see what they did to those Akuma that attacked us on the way? I mean, they weren't even out of their human disguises yet when the senior exorcists just started hacking away; and they didn't even scratch a single human! They killed all the Akuma before anyone had a chance to react! It's just…gah!"

"You done ranting now?" questioned Leslie.

"…"

"Take that as a yes. You have to realize, Alron, that these people have been here far longer than we, especially Linali and Kanda. They have fought more battles, killed more Akuma, and gained more experience then we could possibly have from just joining." When Alron still looked unconvinced, she added, "They also had to suffer much more to become as strong and amazing as there are now." Alron's mask of anger seemed to be cracking. "Besides, we'll get there someday, Alron," she said as she looped her arm through his. She gave him a bright smile as they continued walking.

"…It's still cold as hell here."

Leslie laughed as they caught up to the group of five exorcists now leaving the train station. "That it is."

* * *

"We apologize for not being able to meet you at the train station, but, as you can see, we had quite a situation here." The man speaking was tall and thickly built. His black hair and beard has specks of gray flecked throughout."

"It's ok, Reika-san, we can handle a walk through the city on our own," answered Linali. "And yes, we can see quite clearly that you had a problem. However, that is exactly what we are here to fix and prevent." Her eyes searched through the chaos that reigned over the room they were standing in.

Reika sighed as he explained, "We were assaulted about one hour ago by Akuma. They were obviously attempting to stop our establishment of a new headquarters, but they weren't strong enough to defeat all of us."

While the explanation and conversation of the battle continued between Reika and the senior exorcists, Alron took his time to study the building in which they would be staying and creating a new branch of the Black Religious Order. They were in the main entrance hall, and it was absolutely huge. Spanning what would be five football fields long and about two wide, the place looked more some sort of hangar for air borne craft. This wasn't the extent of the building however. The structure continued both upwards and downwards, each level in each direction getting smaller and smaller as it continued upward or downward. From what Alron had gathered, quarters would be located above and on the first few levels below. The rest would be used for storage, medical wards, and offices. Everything was made of a stone, though it didn't seem quite as cold or creepy as that of the main Order headquarters. A few places had collapsed due to the fight that had just taken place. Alron noted, with disinterest, that there were bloodstains scattered throughout the room, and there were still a few bodies lying about.

Alron dropped back into the conversation just as Reika said, "I'll have somebody show you to your rooms." He motioned for a man dressed in the off-white garb of a finder to come forward. "Show these people where they will be staying and make sure they have everything they need." The hunter bowed and moved off in the direction of the lower levels, indicating the newly arrived exorcists to follow. They descended two floors, and threaded their way through enough corridors Alron thought his head would explode from trying to memorize the path.

Noticing the look on his face, the finder spoke up, "Sir, if you are worried about finding your way out of here, do not worry. Look at the walls. Do you see the faint green lights that blink? Just follow them and you will return to the ground level. The red lights lead further down into the base, though it requires authorization to descend any more than three more levels."

Slightly comforted, Alron let his mind and eyes drift. Unfortunately for him, they both drifted in the same direction; to Linali Lee, walking just ahead of him. He noted everything about her. The curves of her body, the way her hips swung when she walked, the light tone of her voice, the dark wave of her hair bouncing perpetually behind her, everything. His eyes took in every detail and his mind processed them far too fast for him to keep up.

He did not know why, but for some reason he felt drawn to the young lady. He had only known her for around three days, and yet, they was a strange pulling in his chest as if his heart attempted to leap from its cage everytime he saw her. On these occasions, he half-heartedly cursed his foolish feelings. He was no way near as condemning of them as he could be, because he felt as though he should not. In addition to the pulling in his chest, there was also something lurking in his mind. It was right on the edge of his conscious thought. It was like an important dream he woke from desperately trying to clutch at the fraying strings of recollection. He could not grasp what it was that he was missing no matter how much he tried.

Lost in his thought, he did not realize that he was staring at the senior exorcist. Fortunately for him, Leslie did, and she nudged him. _Unfortunately _for him, she nudged him _hard._ He coughed and stumbled as he came out of his stupor. He got several questioning glances from those in front, and a cold glare from Kanda.

Leslie leaned over and quietly giggled, "Maybe next time you zone out, you should make sure it is not aimed at our superior officer."

Alron turned beat red. "It was not aimed at her," he tried to defend, "she was just there when I did zone out."

Leslie rolled her eyes, "Riiight. What I don't get is how, after just three days, you fell in love."

Alron did not just stumble this time, he flat-out fell full on his face. Leslie covered her mouth with her hand to keep from exploding with laughter as everyone ahead stopped and turned to see what the problem was. The reactions of each differed.

The finder just sighed.

Lavi shook his head while muttering something along the lines of "clumsy newbie." Miranda, her hand clasped in Lavi's, just gave the young man a sympathizing look. After all, she had had to endure the same thing lots of times in her life before the Order.

Kanda glared at fallen exorcist boy with eyes as cold as he could make them while Krory, like Lavi, shook his head.

Linali, feeling sorry for the young man, crouched down and grasped his arm to help him up. He shot to his feet, realizing who was holding on to him. His face began to glow like a red lighthouse signaling ships home. He mumbled something and moved away from Linali. She just tilted her head and gave a him curious look. When he saw her like that, Alron's mind just about burst. _Gah! Why does she have to be so damn cute?!_

"Anyways, sir exorcists, we really must be moving on, we still have a little ways to go," the finder spoke up. Everyone slowly began to walk forward again, Leslie and Alron still in the back.

"That wasn't funny," he whispered to a still chuckling Leslie.

"Are you kidding, that was hilarious, you should have seen your face when she helped you up, it was best thing ever!"

"…"

"Oh, c'mon, have a sense of humor!"

"A sense of humor I don't think covers embarrassing yourself in front of people who you are going to be spending a lot of your time with."

"Of course it does! One of the best ways to become sociable is to learn to laugh at yourself and your flaws. To accept them means you're confident about yourself and you're not afraid to admit it."

Alron raised an eyebrow at her, "Where did _that_ come from?"

She shrugged, "Don't know, just felt like making up for what I'm about to do."

"Wha-" Alron's sentence died in his throat as Leslie stuck her foot in front of both of his and gave him a forceful shove to his back. This sequence successfully sent him sprawling forward.

Right into Kanda.

Alron rebounded off of the other exorcist's back, and ended up thumping down hard on his backside. He looked up slowly, only to be met with globes of arctic water. At the center, fire storms raged and promised pain and death on an otherworldly scale. "U…um…Kanda-san…I-I'm sor-"

"GOD DAMMIT BEANSPROUT," Kanda screeched, "I SWEAR I'M GO-" he suddenly stopped mid-threat, his face red with anger, as is just noticing he was saying something he should not of. He spun on his heel and stomped off down the hallway, and upon reaching the closest door, opened it and, entered, and slammed it shut behind him. The sound reverberated from wall to wall down the hallway.

Alron just sat there in shock of what had just happened. He had never heard or seen Kanda that angry, and the senior exorcist's wrath scared him to his core. He climbed shakily to his feet, and only then noticed that nobody else had moved. All the senior exorcists just stood still, looks of shocked etched in stone upon their faces. Their eyes flicked between one another, conveying hidden messages and secret feelings.

"So…I might advise that you all choose your rooms now," the smooth voice of the finder once again cut in over everyone's thoughts. "It appears as though Kanda-san has already chosen his, so the rest of you may choose from the rest."

Quickly, everyone dispersed and selected a room. Linali took the one directly across the hall from Kanda. Krory took the one next to the sour exorcist, and Miranda and Lavi decided to share the room next to Linali. After they decided the rooms, all the senior exorcists, excluding Kanda, went into Linali's room.

Alron raised an eyebrow, "Wonder what they're up to?"

"Nothing we should be concerned about," Leslie stated as she stepped up beside him. She yawned widely. "I'm gonna turn it in for the night, see you in the morning, Alron." She kissed him on the cheek and entered her room, the last one on Kanda's side. That left Alron with the last one on Linali's.

"Seems like someone has got a relationship?" the finder chuckled.

"No…well, sort of. It's a relationship, but not a romantic kind. It's more like a brother-sister thing. We've helped each other through a lot of stuff, so our bonds are strong."

"Strong bonds are the key to strong hearts."

"That's very…insightful. What did you say you're name was?"

"Me? Why would you need to know? I am just a lowly finder, you're an exorcist. You don't even need to interact with me."

"So, what? Just because I became an exorcist, I have lost my right to act like a normal human being?" The finder was taken aback by the conviction in the boy's voice.

"No, sir, it's just that-"

"Stop calling me sir, please. I don't deserve it. My name's Alron."

"But, sir-"

"I told you to stop calling me that dammit. I don't care if you're a peasant or a God-forsaken king, I like you and I want to know your name!"

The finder was amazed, he had never heard an exorcists talk like this. While the majority of them were not bad people, they still treated the finders like lesser beings. Yet here was a boy barely of age who stood in direct defiance of these unspoken rules. The finder felt a pit of respect settle in his stomach. "My name's Takagani, sir." Alron's eyebrow lifted. "Oh, er…A-Alron-san."

"That's better. Takagani-san, huh? Well, I hope to see you around here much more often, Takagani-san, and don't treat me like a higher being from now on, got it?"

"Yes, Alron-san."

"Good night."

"Good night, Alron-san."

Alron retreated to his room while the finder worked his way back to the ground floor, a small smile playing on his lips.

Watching the whole thing from her door, Leslie let a grin form on her own face. _That boy has got to be the fastest friend-finding kid I have ever known._ She closed the door and lay down on her bed, her mind quickly whisking her away into the blissful oblivion of sleep.

* * *

Linali sat down heavily on her bed as she released an eternal sigh. She had been struck hard by Kanda's comment earlier, they all had. That was why they were here, in her room. It was quiet for a while as the four exorcists sat and stared at each other and the small, dull gray room.

The silence stretched on for several minutes until it was broken by Miranda asking, "Do you think he really meant it, what he said?"

Another sigh escaped Linali as she swatted a few spiders nesting on the wall near her. "I don't know, he probably just did it out of habit."

"But it's been three years since he last would have worked on that habit," Lavi piped up.

Linali looked at him as she replied, "Lavi, do you honestly mean to tell me that you haven't thought about him in three years? That you never wondered what it would be like if he hadn't died? How life would have been different was he still here? We all have, including Kanda. He won't admit, but I know he has."

"Beansprout…" murmured Krory.

"Haven't heard it in ages," commented Lavi. "I never thought that it would do this to me if I ever did hear it again." Everyone nodded. The name Kanda had used without thinking had struck a nerve in all of them. It reminded them of Allen and his smile and all the good times that they had had with him. It also brought his loss to the forefront of their minds, right where it painfully punctured their thoughts with rusty spikes of iron.

"Well, we can't do much about it now, what's done is done," spoke Miranda.

"Yeah, guess you're right," Linali said. "Anyway, I don't know about you guys but I am tired, so I think I'm gonna catch some sleep." The others stood and, after wishing her a good night, left the room. Linali collapsed onto the bed.

She really was not too tired. It was just an excuse she had used to clear the others out of the room before her resolve had crumbled in front of them. The name Kanda had used to describe Alron had hit her extra hard. Not only did it remind her of Allen, but it also brought the obvious similarities between Alron and Allen to light. And that only served to hurt her even more. They were both kind and caring for everyone around them. Their personalities were very similar when compared directly to one another. Then there was the appearance. Neglecting the metal mask and the black hair, everytime she saw Alron, she couldn't help but pull a double take, making sure that Allen really had just suddenly popped back into her life. It was a cruel joke for fate to play on her.

The worst part was that, even though he was not her Allen, she felt like she was beginning to fall for the young man. She felt the same thing when she looked at him that she had felt the last few days of Allen's life when she has been around him. It was a horrible feeling. The feeling itself was not unpleasant, no. The tingling that spread through her body igniting her nerves, the race of her heart, and the slight light-headedness all brought pleasure to her. But they also brought pain. Pain that she was betraying Allen and his memory. That she should not fall in love with anyone, let alone someone who she might only be falling for because of his similarity to Allen.

_Dammit!_ Linali closed her eyes and brought her hand to her head. The warm skin did little to sooth the pounding. Slowly, slowly, her mind began to calm down and the blackness of slept swept over her, inviting dreams and visions to abound.

* * *

Alron stood still in the shower, his one arm pressed against the wall as he leaned heavily upon it. Today had been a long day. From the journey, to the arrival at the partially wrecked headquarters, to the outburst from Kanda, to the conversation with Takanagi, everything had just served to wear him down further. He closed his eyes as the hot water ran over his back, helping to soothe away the accumulated pain and stress.

Suddenly, the water seemed to heat up. But only on his head. He realized that the water wasn't even _touching_ his head. _What the hell?_ He brought his hand to his forehead, only to have his knees buckle unsteadily as something seared itself into his brain.

It was a vision of sorts. He didn't get much of a glance at before it faded away and he was left clutching at transparent threads of unattainable gossamer memory. He remembered the surroundings clearly though. It had been a deserted street. The sky had been dark and buildings imposed themselves upon the street, where his viewpoint had set him. It had been snowing gently, and nobody else had been there.

Alron knew, somehow, that something else had happened, or was going to happen, but he could not recall what, for the life of him. He turned off the shower, dried off and hit the lights before burrowing under his covers against the cold. He didn't understand what the vision meant, and he was far too tired to delve too far into it. Sleep took him quickly.

* * *

Far away, sealed in another dimension, a figure stood over a large plate of glass, watching the figures moving across it and listening to their conversations with the utmost care.

"Only thing they are concerned about is their silly human drama. They have no clue what's coming."

The figure hunched over the scrying glass turned to the source of the voice. "Are you absolutely certain? I mean, that the Akuma that you infested their base with aren't obvious? That they don't already know about them?"

"No need to worry, the Akuma are extremely clever and disguised so well that no one will be able to find them. The only one who could have done so died three years ago."

"And almost ruined the plan by doing so."

"It was only a minor setback. Don't underestimate me, I was out for three years, but now I am back the Akuma are back in full force as well, Road."

Road turned around, "I am still angry at you for getting Allen killed."

The other figure laughed and turned as his giant frame exited the room, "I must go attend to Tyki-pon, behave yourself."

Road smiled sweetly as she turned back to the glass. She traced her finger over the sleeping form of Alron. _You look like him so much_. She sighed. _But you aren't the same as him._ She smirked. _Still, you might become a nice toy._


	13. Disaster

sorry, please don't kill me

i didn't mean to take this long with this chapter, i guess i just kinda lost inspiration, but i'm really glad with how this chapter ended up, i hope you guys agree

please forgive me and review

enjoy...

* * *

Disaster

"No, Alron. That's all wrong. You're wide open."

Alron barely had time to roll out of the way before a hammer came smashing down on his vacated position. He stumbled to his feet before dodging the flashing mallet again. It managed to clip him on the side however, knocking him off balance and disorientating him. His senses came back just in time to realize the hammer was coming back, and that he had no where near enough time to dodge it. So he did the only thing he could, he slammed his scythe against the mallet. He pressed for all he was worth in a desperate attempt to win the power struggle. The attacking weapon slowly began to move backward.

Alron smirked. _I'm winning!_ He pushed harder, and was rewarded by seeing the hammer move even farther back. However, his victory was short-lived. He was suddenly bathed in a red glow, and he looked up at the mallet. On it, burning bright crimson, was a giant symbol for fire.

Alron froze, "H-Hey, you're kidding right?"

Obviously though, his opponent was not, as the next second a column of twisting flame burst forth from the end of the weapon and engulfed Alron, whose mouth opened in a silent scream as the flames wrapped around him. After several seconds of intense heat and wicked fire, the flames disappeared. Alron was left on the ground, panting heavily and trembling uncontrollably.

He looked up and glared at his redheaded, eye-patched opponent before spitting through gritted teeth, "Dammit Lavi, this is supposed to be training. Not 'kill the new exorcist.' I could have died there."

Lavi merely shrugged, "You only would have died if I had wanted you to. Now, to the grading. Your speed and power are good. Your offense as well seemed acceptable. You _defense_, however, will get you killed faster than an Akuma at a Black Church Ball. Defense is everything, Alron. If you don't know how to properly defend against enemy attacks, and turn the fight around to give yourself an advantage, you will never be able to use your more powerful offensive skills." Lavi sighed. "Dammit, I am not even supposed to be here, I should be helping Linali and Krory with the finishing touches on the headquarters."

Alron nodded slightly as this comment. It was true, Lavi _was_ supposed to be helping Linali and Krory. The original plan had been for Alron and Leslie to squeeze in last minute training with Kanda while the remaining senior exorcists helped Reika and his staff finish setting up the new headquarters. However, things had gotten twisted around, and it technically been Alron's fault, though he traced it back to Leslie. Kanda was still angry with the young exorcist for the incident on the first evening. The whole two weeks that they had been there the man had not even so much as looked at Alron, let alone interacted with him. So of course, when they had told him he was going to be training both Alron and Leslie, he had coldly refused. There was a big argument that Alron had not been able to follow, and the decision reached was that Kanda would help Leslie, while Lavi was stuck with Alron. Somewhere along the line, Miranda had decided to tag along just in case there was in injury.

So here they were. Lavi offered a hand to Alron, who gratefully accepted and rose to his feet. He looked across the rocky ground to see how their companions were holding up. He was surprised by what he saw. He had expected Leslie to have her pistols in hand and firing shots at a quickly dodging Kanda. What he got was something completely different.

There was Kanda, his muscles flexing in a way that would be sure to send any female swooning as he slashed and parried with a wooden practice sword. There was really no surprise there. No, what caught Alron off guard was Leslie. In her hands she held a practice sword as well, and she was doing her best to defend herself against the onslaught coming from the senior exorcist. As he watched, she blocked an attack and tried to use it as an opening. She stabbed forward, aiming to catch Kanda off guard.

Now, anyone who had known Kanda for any length of time knew that the man just could not be caught be surprise, no matter what happened. Lavi had tried several times. Bursting out of closets as the man passed, hiding things in the man's room that would give most people a heart attack. The man never flinched at any of this, and often times the redheaded trickster would find himself staring down the blade of Mugen. Unfortunately for Leslie, she did not know this.

Kanda brought his sword up in a short and sharp arc, batting away her wooden blade. Leslie was thrown off balance as her sword swung out away from her, carrying her arm with it. Kanda spun into her, still using the momentum from his of swing. He delivered harsh blow to the back of her head with the flat of the sword. She stumbled forward and fell to the ground. Kanda growled something at her, but Alron could not hear this far away. Leslie shifted to her knees, but kept her head bowed and her hair covering her face as she panted heavily. Kanda said the same thing again. This time her head shot up and she glared at him before spitting something back at him.

Lavi smiled gravely and spoke at Alron, "Your friend is a very brave person, Alron."

"What do you mean? Wait, you can understand them?" he asked.

Lavi tapped his temple, "Bookman here, Alron, forget that? I remember what things look like with one glance, you think I can't read lips?"

"Alright, so why are you saying she's brave?"

"She just ordered Kanda to help her up."

"So?"

"Well, first off, she ordered him. This is Kanda we're talking about here. No one gets away with ordering him." Lavi sighed as he watched Kanda stare Leslie down. "Not only this, but she used his first name as well."

Alron gasped, "Oh hell no." If there was anything the young exorcist had learned in his short time in Kanda's company, it was do not get in his way, do not make direct eye contact, and never -_never_- call him by his first name.

Lavi nodded and grimaced, "I think training for her is over today."

What happened next amazed the both of them. Kanda walked stiffly over to Leslie and hesitantly reached a hand down to her. Leslie's ice blue eyes shown with shock as she gingerly reached out to accept the offered hand. Kanda hoisted her to her feet before picking up her practice sword and handing it to her. Lavi and Alron stared at each other, completely disbelieving.

"What-" Lavi began.

"The-"

"Hell?!" Lavi completed the sentence. "Did you-"

"See that, he-"

"With the walking over-"

"And he helped her up-"

"And she even used his first name!"

"What in the name of Christ just happened?" Alron exclaimed, his hands (like Lavi's) grabbing his hair in the throes of confusion.

Suddenly, Lavi stopped thrashing about and assumed a thoughtful pose. "Unless…"

"Unless what, Lavi?"

"Unless our cute little Yuu-chan has feelings for Leslie!"

Alron froze, his mismatched eyes widening in disbelief, "L-Lavi, you can't be serious! This is Kanda we're talking about here! For God's sake, listen to yourself! You're suggesting that _Kanda_ has a romantic interest in _Leslie_!"

A giggle was heard off to the side, and both men turned to greet its owner. Miranda stepped forward, holding a hand lightly to her mouth. "Don't underestimate such things as love, Alron-kun. Love works the most when no one suspects it. It is very powerful and can overcome anything."

"_Almost_ anything," Lavi barely whispered, thinking it too low for anyone to hear. But Alron caught it. He suddenly remembered the story Lavi had told him about Linali. He was sure that was what Lavi was referring to.

"Anyway, Lavi, Linali and Krory are requesting your presence back up in the main room. Linali's taking a break, so you need to fill in for her."

"What about Alron's training?"

"She said to leave it for later. In the mean time, you have free reign, Alron-kun."

"We'll continue this another time Alron. Be sure to work on your defense until then, alright?" Alron nodded as Lavi and Miranda turned and left the room.

Alron sighed and looked back over to Leslie and Kanda, wondering if he should split them up. It had been awhile since he had spent some time alone with Leslie, and he needed to talk to her. However, he could see just how engrossed the two of them were in the fight that he was not even sure that if he spoke they could hear him. _Guess its just me then._

He left the massive room used for training and wondered through the hallways. He did not have a destination in mind, he just needed to move. The room he had just been in was located on the third floor below ground level, and took up a good half of the whole level. He glanced to the walls, having familiarized himself with the small lights that helped guide him to his destination in the time he had spent here, and began to follow the gentle green blinks.

As Alron trudged through deserted hallways of cold stone, his thought over his situation. He and the others were almost done here in Litty, and soon they would be heading back to main headquarters, where Komui would immediately begin sending them on missions, Alron and Leslie included. Maybe when that happened he would be busy enough to forget everything else that was happening to him. His hand unconsciously touched the streak of white in his otherwise jet black hair. It had gotten thicker since the first morning Leslie had noticed it. It was twice as large now. A few others had noticed it now too, and had asked about it. He had merely smiled and claimed "image change."

This was not his only problem though. Oh no, of course not. Alron had ­_lots_ of problems. Not the least of which was Kanda's loathing of him. On top of that, he was almost certain his sanity was slowly crumbling away into nothing. Visions seemed to be paying him a visit by day and night. In his slumber, the scene of the deserted street taunted him. It was the same every time, except that with each recurrence he felt he was getting closer to knowing what was going to happen. He never got to see it through to the end though. He would always either bolt upright in bed soaked in a cold sweat or the vision would fade and move to another. The same one that had toyed around with his mind back at main headquarters. The one where the gigantic, leather left hand would attack and pursue him. He sighed. Perhaps it was time he see a psychiatrist about all of this. After all, maybe it was somehow connected to his memories. _Still, I'm not sure even a shrink could help with the last thing. The-_

"_Help me!"_ a sudden scream reverberated off the walls. Alron's head shot straight up. There they were again! The voices! He had been hearing them for around a week now. Anytime he was walking the corridors, random shrieks and cries for help reached his ears. For some reason, nobody else seemed to be able to hear them. _"Please, save me!"_ Alron looked to his right, where the voice was sounding from. He saw nothing but bare rock. "_Please!"_ The voice sounded like it was moving along the wall now, and Alron took off after it.

Through twisting corridors and confusing passages he ran, following the ever-persistent pleas for help. He paid no heed to where he was going. The small lights that guided a person through the building flashed past in a flowing rainbow of confusion. This time, he was determined to find the source of the voice, to discover what plagued him. He thought he had lost it a few times, but then he would catch the voice, floating away around a corner or up a flight of stairs. Always, _always_, it was just ahead of him, just out of reach.

After what felt like forever, Alron rounded a corner. And recoiled from what he saw. There before him was a terrible sight. It looked like it had been human once. It was surrounded by a blaze of violet fire that seemed to be eating through it non-stop. Little bits of itself floated away as it deteriorated slowly. The agony that the thing was enduring, its suffering, was palpable, choking Alron with its horridness. The thing opened its mouth and released a bloodcurdling scream of pain.

Alron grabbed his head and slumped to the ground in pain. It felt like liquid fire was running through his veins. The oppressive atmosphere forced the air from his lungs, leaving him gasping for breath. His head felt as though it was splitting open, and he could not think straight. His vision became blurry and shaky as he tried to focus on the thing in front of him to no avail.

Images flashed through his mind, one after another. A deserted street. The headquarters. The phantom hand. The decaying _thing_ in front of him. An obese creature. A giant white sword. A crashed carriage. Linali. Alron could not breathe. He could not think. He could not see. He could not hear. He was drowning, suffocating in this river of confusion. He felt his consciousness slipping, and the death grip he had on his hair slackened as the strength began to ebb from his body.

"God damn cobwebs! Stupid spiders are fucking everywhere!" someone suddenly spluttered in front of Alron. He stumbled forward, seemingly blinded by the thick cobwebs he had passed through, dispelling the horrifying image that had paralyzed Alron. He stopped when he saw Alron on the ground, hands covering his face and panting heavily. "Alron?"

Alron looked up. Upon recognizing the figure he whispered hoarsely, "T-Takagani?"

"What are you doing here, Alron?" Over the past two weeks, the two had become good friends, so they had dropped the prefixes from each other's names.

"I-I'm not really sure. I was f-following a voice. T-Then I saw this th-thing," he managed to stutter out as he visibly shuddered at the memory of the thing before him. "I-It was-"

Sensing his friend's distress, Takagani crouched down and placed a hand on Alron's shoulder. "Calm down, Alron. Breathe, you look like you're about suffocate." Alron nodded before breathing deeply a few times. "Now, what happened?"

"I just got done with training." Alron took a large gulp of air before continuing, "As I was walking I heard a voice calling for help, so I followed it. And I rounded this corner here and saw…something. Hey, don't give me that face. I'm not going crazy. I'm not!" he exclaimed upon seeing the worried expression on his friend's face.

Takagani lifted an eyebrow but said nothing. _He's the only one who sees these things, all the rest of us see and hear are nothing but rocks and spiders. Something's gotta be up._ He shook his head before standing and hauling Alron to his feet as well. "I was just off to lunch, care to join?"

Alron smiled, "Sure."

* * *

The cafeteria was almost as large as the training room and filled with massive wooden tables that managed to sit everyone in the building when full. The meal system was not set up the way it was at main headquarters, rather there were dished already prepared and laid out, and people took what they wanted. Alron and Takagani chose an out of the way table to sit at, so if they discussed anything, unfriendly ears could not overhear them.

Alron only had a bowl of plain rice in front of him. He was not that hungry, and even if he had been, he did not think that he would be able to hold it down, considering what he had just experienced. Takagani had selected a steaming bowl of some type of soup.

He flipped back the brown hair hanging in front of his face before saying, "So, Alron, about these voices you've been hearing…"

"Don't ask, you won't believe anything I tell you. It's a waste of time, everyone thinks I'm going crazy."

"I don't."

"Right, that's why you gave me that look earlier."

Takagani sighed, "Okay, I'm worried. It's not normal for most people to hear voices and see things. Something's going on, I just want to know what."

"You and I both."

Before the conversation could advance any farther, however, somebody slid into the seat next to Alron. He turned his head, prepared to politely ask them to leave, but his words lodged in his throat and did not budge. There, sitting beside him on the bench as if she had been there the whole time, was Linali Lee. She looked at him and offered a smile before speaking, "Good afternoon, Alron-kun, Takagani-san."

"Good afternoon, Linali-san," Takagani replied.

Alron flustered about for a few moments before finally choking out, "Hi."

Linali looked him over critically before speaking in a concerned voice, "Alron-kun, you don't look so good. Are you ok? Did something happen?"

"Um…"

"Yes, Linali-san, something did happen," Takagani spoke up for his friend. "Alron heard more voices, and he saw something too."

Linali's chopsticks froze halfway to her mouth. "He what?" Alron shot Takagani a death glare before timidly looking back at Linali. Her eyes flashed for a second before she asked him, "And what did you see, Alron-kun?"

Alron glanced around before quietly explaining what happened. As he talked, Linali's face got darker and darker, and when he described the thing he had encountered(he avoided mentioning the images he had seen), she stood abruptly and began to walk away. Alron looked at Takagani questioningly. His friend shrugged and motioned him after her. He moved off after the senior exorcist, while Takagani finished off his soup. He looked at the retreating back of his friend before shaking his head. Why could he not shake the feeling that something horrible was about to happen?

* * *

"Linali!" Alron cried out as he ran to catch up with her. He turned and gave him an odd look, but she stopped and waited for him. When he reached her he took a second to catch his breath before asking, "What was that all about?"

She looked away before stating in a rather emotionless voice, "Nothing."

Alron was taken aback by her sudden coldness. He took a tentative step forward. "Linali, I don't know you as well as I know Leslie. But I do know you well enough to know that you're lying to me." A small frown creased Linali's forehead as she eyes took on a sad hue. "Linali," Alron continued in a quiet voice, "what's wrong?"

She finally looked at him, and he saw unshed tears in her eyes. "Everything. Everything's wrong Alron. I can barely stand it anymore! The man I loved died before my eyes! And it was my fault, mine! He was protecting me! And now, after all these years, I've finally gotten over him, and then you come along! You, who looks like him, bring back such painful memories! It's killing me! You're more like him everyday! So much that now you're even seeing the things he once saw!"

"Linali…"

"I'm falling for you!" she suddenly exclaimed. He stopped, his entire body frozen. Had he understood her correctly? Was it possible? She covered her mouth with her hand, eyes wide with the realization of what she had just said. The previously held back tears began to track down her face. They never made it all the way.

Alron stepped forward and brushed them gently away. Linali looked up at him in surprise. Then her face contorted in sorrow and she balled into his chest. His arms wrapped around her waist, holding her close as she let loose everything she had contained.

It felt so right. She seemed to fit perfectly into his arms. Alron knew he should not have been thinking those things, but he couldn't help it. After an eternity, she lifted her head and pushed off of him. He restrained her though, not letting her go too far. Their eyes met and as if by some magnetic force, their faces moved closer, inch by inch.

"Alron," she whispered quietly, her breath tickling his lips, "we shouldn't be doing this."

"Why not? We both need this," he replied as he moved ever closer. They were only a hairbreadth's apart.

They closed their eyes and moved to close the final gap between them.

That's when all hell broke loose.

The wall to their right exploded with tremendous force, blasting rock and dirt into the air. At the same time, Linali slumped over and fell to the ground.

Alron stumbled to his feet; the explosion had knocked him down. Not only that, it had also blown out the hearing in his right ear. He was bleeding from numerous wounds caused by shrapnel. He felt no pain, however; paid it no heed. His only concern was the unconscious girl in front of him. Her and the two figures behind her. They were humans, both of them. At least, that is what they appeared to be.

They had yellow eyes and gray skin. There were cross markings running around their foreheads. The left one was a young girl, wearing a striped dress and black stockings. She had an umbrella hoisted over one shoulder, and appeared to be chewing gum. Her spiky hair waved around in the fading shock wave of the blast. The other one was taller, a young man, perhaps in his early twenties. He wore a suit and carried what looked like an old fashioned cane. He wore his hair marginally long and curled slightly. Upon his head sat a top hat and white gloves adorned his hands.

Alron struggled to fight past the ringing of his head. He had enough sense to invoke his Innocence, the blade coming to life as he thought about it. "Wh-Who are you people?"

The man gave him a bit of a surprised glance, "Oh, you're still standing, boy? Not bad. But still," he smirked as he looked at Alron, "you're a far cry from the one who preceded you."

_Allen Walker!_ Anger suddenly flared up from within Alron. _Why am I always being compared to him, dammit?!_ "Damn you!" he screamed as he lunged at the man.

The man merely shook his head, "Boy, you have no idea what you're getting yourself into." He stepped forward into Alron's attack, but before the scythe could cleave through him, he reached his hand toward Alron.

And _into_ Alron.

Alron stopped moving and his eyes grew wide as he looked at the arm potruding from his chest. The hand was _inside_ him. "What?" he whispered incredulously.

"I have your heart in my hand, boy. With just a squeeze I could kill you." Indeed Alron felt something around his heart, a pressure that stopped him cold. He felt that if he so much as twitched, his life was over. "You face, boy, is nothing like his. Although you look alike, he was so different." The pressure increased and Alron coughed, spewing up blood. The man's smile grew larger. Where were the others? Why weren't they here to help to him? To help Linali? "Well, I could kill you, but Road asked I leave you to her." He pulled his hand out from Alron's chest and the boy fell to his knees.

The young girl stepped up, "You remembered, Tyki. I was afraid you were gonna kill him." She walked over to Alron and curtsied. "I am Road Kamelot, and this man is my brother, Tyki Mikk. We are from the Noah Family."

Alron started at this. "The Noah family? Aren't you enemies of the exorcists?"

Road giggled as something began to materialize in the air next to her. "Yes we are. Though sometimes we prefer not to fight."

"Che," Alron said, stealing Kanda's favorite catch phrase.

"I loved an exorcist once, you know?"

Alron stared at her incredulously. He did not buy that for a second, but he needed to stall for time for the others to get there. "You expect me to believe that?"

She smiled as a door appeared out of the air. "No, I don't. However… " Her smile turned sadistic and she flicked her wrist. A large, fat candle floated just above her hand. Its end tapered down to a maniacal point. "I don't like people who don't believe me." She twirled the candle between her fingers, staring at Alron as if daring him to move.

"You know, boy," Tyki spoke up from beside Linali, "I hope you're not waiting for your friends to get here and help. They are engaged with the Akuma, so they won't be able to make it."

"What are you talking about? If there were Akuma coming, we would have known, we would have been ready."

"Oh really, boy? They have been right here under your noses the whole time, and yet you still didn't notice them."

Alron froze. "What?"

"The attack two weeks ago, accomplished its goal. It was only to get Akuma into the base, and it worked. None of you had any clue." He bent down and scooped up Linali in his arms.

"What are you doing?!" Alron screamed, he began to move toward Tyki. "Put Linali down, you bastard!"

"Ah ah ah, Alron," Road spoke while grabbing his sleeve.

He spun and yelled at her, "Let me go you fu-" Alron was interrupted by the candle stake being plunged into his left eye.

It took half a second to register what had happened, and then he screamed. The pain was unbearable, and losing half his sight nearly made him faint. As it was, his Innocence deactivated from lack of concentration, and he slumped to the ground. The metal plate covering half his face fell to the ground, the silver stained crimson. Through his one good eye(half-lidded from his failing consciousness) he saw Road running her tongue along the candle, tasting his blood.

"It's not as sweet as his."

"Road," Tyki was at the door now, white light spilling from the open gateway, "We have to go."

"Right, right, Tyki. Coming." She leaned over Alron one more time. She slipped something in his pocket before standing and walking over to the door. "If you want her back, you have to come to us."

"So long, boy."

The door closed, cutting off all light, and then vanished.

Alron was left on the ground, the wound that had once been his eye bleeding profusely, his eyesight fading. He closed his eyes(eye, technically), and as he blacked out, the final thing he saw was Linali's face. He had been so close to kissing her.

Little did Alron realize that he would never get the opportunity to do so.

Ever.

* * *

A/N: gasp holy shit, more foreshadowing

cackles evilly so, what's gonna happen now?

btw, i'll say it now, i am thinking one more chapter, and then the prolouge for this story

please review

BONUS POINTS to anyone who can identify the Akuma, i'm pretty sure i mentioned them a few times in this chapter


	14. Enter Pierrot

hi guys. yes, i'm still alive, and i'm really hoping that you all don't decide to change that fact because it took me...5 months for this chapter

it _is_ the final chapter though, so i took my time and gave you guys the best experience i could

enjoy...

* * *

Enter Pierrot

Snow drifted lightly downward in the early evening. A thin layer had already coated everything, and it was continuing to build on itself. The wind was gusting lightly, just strongly enough to pluck a hat off of an unsuspecting head or to weave through a jacket to chill the skin beneath. The temperature was at the point where breath seemed more like steam pouring from a train engine.

The lawn was well manicured and expertly landscaped, though it was hard to tell in the dead of winter. Small pine trees dotted the gently sloping lawn. A walkway paved with red bricks and white stepping stones led to a large house. A mansion, in fact. The outer walls and the gigantic columns holding up the overhanging roof were pristine white. The shutters were of a dark green, bordering on black. The front doors were massive, easily being tall enough to fit a man twice normal height. They, too, were white, with a golden knocker and knob on each. The windows spilled warm light onto the snow. Shadows moved within and the faint tinkle of music could be heard, combined with the hush of talk and the chatter of laughter.

Inside the building, in the magnificent greeting hall laid with lush wood, a party was being held. A small band with string instruments played lightly in the corner, as people twirled through the room, arms wrapped around their dancing partners. Wine was being served by waiters in smart white jackets deftly weaving through the throng of people. Groups of quietly talking people were scattered randomly over the room, and some even were on the stairs and second floor. Everyone was generally enjoying the party.

There was one person however, who was not partaking of the festivities. She was on an outside balcony of the second floor, head supported by her hand, her elbow resting on the balcony's railing. She wore only a long, tight-fitting dress of dark green with no sleeves, despite the cold. She sighed, the wind gently carrying away her worries in a small cloud of swirling white. The glass door separating her from the other party guests opened behind her. She did not turn to see who it was that had joined her on the balcony. Nor did she flinch when two arms encircled her waist and a warm body was pressed against her back. Rather, she sighed again and leaned back slightly.

The person behind her leaned down and whispered in her ear, his breath tickling her as he did, "What's wrong Linali? The party does not satisfy you?"

She chuckled slightly, "That's not entirely true."

"Oh? Enlighten me."

She was silent for a moment before she pushed herself up off the railing and turned in the man's arms to face him. Her breath hitched when she found herself looking into intense, deep blue eyes. White hair framed a boyish face, and a long scar ran the down through the left eye to the bottom of the jawbone. "Allen," she said tenderly, as something in her heart stirred to the appearance of his face.

He raised his eyebrows in question. "Come now Linali, it's been a long while since I've heard you say my name like that. Something's gotten into you tonight, dear."

She closed her eyes for a second before opening them again and speaking, "It's not the party. The party's wonderful. I just can't seem to enjoy it. I don't know why. Something just seems…off."

"Off?" Linali nodded. Allen went silent for a moment. "I'm sorry," he finally said.

Surprised, Linali looked up at him. "Whatever are you sorry for?"

"I brought you along to this party without much thought, when I should have realized you'd feel this way."

She reached up and gently laid her hand on the side of his face. "Allen, I _wanted_ to come to the party, if you remember. I'm glad I'm here, I'm just feeling slightly out of place in the midst of all these people I don't know." She buried her face in his chest, and his arms instinctively tightened around her. "As long as you are with me, though, I'd go anywhere and do anything."

Suddenly the warmth in Allen's body seemed to disappear. His arms dropped from around her body and he stepped back from her. "Linali, you need to make a choice." His voice no longer held the loving quality it had just moments before. Now it was cold and vaguely reminiscent of Kanda's.

"W-What are you talking about, Allen?" The change in his demeanor had scared her.

"I mean you need to make a choice. Between him or me."

"Who?"

"Him," Allen said, indicating a person newly emerged onto the balcony. Linali was unable to recall hearing the door open, nor had she sensed anyone else on the balcony with her and Allen until this moment. The figure Allen had pointed out stepped out of the shadow and into the moonlight. Linali gasped. He was Allen's mirror image. Well, almost. He has black hair instead of white, and a long braid fell onto his chest. The left half of his face was covered with a metal mask, and his right eye was silver, rather than the midnight-blue of both his other eye and both of Allen's.

"A-Alron-kun," she whispered feebly.

He smiled bitterly, "Did you forgot about me Linali? Already?"

"I-I-"

"No excuses, Linali," Alron said roughly as he held up a hand to stop her protests in her throat. "We don't need those. We need only one thing. A decision. From you." He stepped closer, and Allen followed, though back a little. Linali could suddenly feel how very cold the wind was, and how the rough stone of the railing pressed painfully into her back.

"Which one of us do you choose?"

* * *

The street was deserted. Brick building's rose on either side, making it feel almost cramped on the spacious road.

He shivered.

Snow was gently falling from the night-blackened sky, and he had the sudden impression that he was not the only one right now in a place where it was snowing. But he pushed it from his mind. He turned his attention back to the scene in front of him. The carriage was there, a crumpled mass of shattered wood and bent metal. The driver was most likely in that mess somewhere, but he did not care about that. He was more concerned with the heap of flesh and bones he was kneeling next to. Without being consciously aware of it, he realized he was crying. He reached out a hand toward the man on the ground, the one who had been struck by the swerving carriage. He hoped the red pool slowly spreading on the ground was not what he knew it to be.

He managed to choke out a single word through the thickness in his throat.

"Mana."

Alron sat straight up in bed, his entire body covered in a cold sweat, his undone hair rushing up with him, sticking to his face in strands. The word reverberated back and forth through his head. _Mana. The hell is Mana?_ He was so confused. He did not know where he was or what was going on. As his vision began to clear of drowsiness, he realized that he was, yet again, in a room equipped for medical purposes. He shook his head. How had he ended up here? He could not remember anything.

All of a sudden, Alron noticed that his eyesight seemed to be lacking. It was almost as if one of his eyes was closed. He reached a hand up to his face, wondering if his eye was closed shut for some reason, when his fingers ran into a cloth stretched over his left eye and part of his face. _Wonder why that's there?_ He coaxed up an edge of the adhesive and pulled the bandage off. This, however, did not improve his vision in the slightest. _What? _He once again prodded at his eye. This time however, he encountered no barriers. In fact, he encountered _nothing,_ only a puckered hole_._ It took a second to register what he had discovered. His left eye was _missing_.

In a flood of horrible memories, everything that had happened came back to Alron. The vision in the hallway. His almost kissing Linali. The two Noah. The one called Road stabbing his eye. Those two monsters kidnapping Linali. He stopped, his breath stopped and his heart nearly followed. They had Linali! Those bastards! He had to move, to get everyone together! To save her! He leapt up from bed, surprised to find himself fully dressed. After recovering form the momentary spell of dizziness that normally accompanies standing up too quickly, he dashed out of his room.

And straight into a chair set up outside the door. He went sprawling, turning several times over before slamming into a wall and staying there with his head on the floor and his legs in the air. Even with his head swimming, he managed to right himself and glare at the wooden seat that had tripped him. It was only now that he realized he was not the only one in the room. Arranged on the two couches were six people. Leslie and Krory sat beside Kanda on the one nearest the door to the medical room, while Reika shared the other with Lavi and Miranda. They had obviously been right in the middle of an intense conversation, as they were all save Kanda) bent over the small table arranged between the couches. Upon Alron's clumsy arrival, though, they had all stopped talking and turned to stare at him with wide (or in Kanda's case, cold) eyes.

Leslie was the first to move. She slowly stood up. "Alron?" she said quietly. He sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. In his haste to save Linali, he had completely forgotten everyone else. Leslie suddenly vaulted over to him and wrapped her arms around him, leaning her forehead into his.

"L-Leslie?" Her behavior was confusing him. Alron felt pattering against his chest, and he realized that Leslie was crying.

"You idiot," she sobbed into him. "I thought you were dead. When we found you, and you were covered in blood. I-I thought…" She looked up, ice blues eyes overflowing with tears. The sight of her in this state destroyed him inside, especially since he had caused it. He had not thought of the effect his actions would have on those around him, especially her. She was the closest thing he had to family, and he hated himself for making her cry.

He embraced her tightly before whispering quietly to her, "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, Leslie." They stayed like this for several more minutes, completely oblivious to the fact that the others were watching them. He gently released her and held her at arm's length. They stared at each for awhile. Finally, they walked back to the others, not a slight bit embarrassed about what they had just done. Alron picked up the chair he had toppled over and sat on it. Leslie went back beside Kanda, and seemed to snuggle up to him. Alron noticed this. _Could Lavi have been right?_

"Alron-san," Reika spoke, his gruff voice bringing Alron back to the issue at hand. "As you well know, this base was assaulted yesterday by many Akuma, led by two Noah."

"How?" Alron interrupted.

Reika held up a hand to stop his questioning. "I was getting to that. The attack that occurred on the day you arrived, we all thought that it was just that, an attack. Nothing more. However, we were wrong, it appears the goal of the Akuma at that time was to sneak even more Akuma in. These Akuma would stay within our base, disguised to keep them hidden from us, and spy on us, reporting movements and strategies back to the Noah."

"I know that, but how did they remain hidden from us? The Noah sad that they had been right under our noses the entire time."

"Spiders."

"What?"

"It was the spiders. Did you notice them? They were everywhere. The Akuma were disguised as spiders."

Alron was silent for a minute. "So, this whole time we've been spied upon?"

"Yes."

"Dammit." He closed his eyes for a second. They snapped open suddenly. "They have Linali."

"We know."

"So why the fuck aren't you doing anything?" Alron was surprised to find himself shouting.

"Because we can't!" Reika was calm in his reply.

"Calm down, Alron," Lavi spoke. "Reika's right, we can't do a thing, the Noah disappeared without a trace, going through one of Road's doors. They entered a separate _dimension._"

"Then how come they told me that if I wanted to rescue Linali I had to go to them?"

"I don't see why they would. It's impossible."

"But-"

"Alron," Lavi cut him off, "we're all worried about Linali. You're not the only one here who cares for her. The simple thing is though, we can't do anything." Alron noticed for the first time that Lavi's hand was white knuckled where he was gripping the fabric of the couch. He was pissed as well. Angry that he could nothing for her. "Unless we had Road herself here or one of her keys, we can do nothing."

Alron perked up, "One of her keys?"

"Yes. Road can make special keys that can turn any door into one of her doors. She once played a game with a key and a bunch of exorcists. They all almost died." Alron's hand unconsciously rose to touch his breast pocket. He vaguely remembered Road slipping something into it before he had passed out. And there it was. Something hard and cold pressing against his chest. _Could it be?_ "All we can do now is tend to headquarters and pray that the Noah will give us an opening to take Linali back. I'm sorry, Alron."

Alron tilted his head slightly, "It's ok, Lavi-san. I think I need to take a walk. Alone," he added as he saw Leslie began to stand.

Lavi nodded, "That's fine. Do not do anything rash such as try to find a way to the Noah, it's impossible."

Alron bowed slightly before going back into the room he had woken up in. He grabbed his Innocence and left, heading for the confusing tangle of corridors.

When he was out of earshot, Lavi looked at Leslie. "I hate asking you to do this, but could you follow him? He didn't seem too convinced there, and I have a feeling that he was up to something. If something happens, come find us, or give some kinda signal."

Leslie nodded hesitantly. She stood and moved away to follow Alron. Lavi shook his head. Something was going to happen; he could feel it. He just wished he knew what it was.

* * *

"Wait, Alron!"

"I can't wait! They have Linali, and if I move too slowly, they'll do something horrible to her! I need to save her as quickly as possible!"

"Alron!"

"Dammit, Takagani, what don't you understand?!"

Said boy wrenched his hand from Alron's death grip, wincing as he did so. "What don't _you_ understand Alron? I know full well about Linali-san's situation. I also know why you want to move, but Alron, you have to realize a few things. First off, we don't have a way to get to them, Lavi told me that. Secondly, you alone cannot fight them. And thirdly, you're injured! You just woke up not twenty minutes ago and, oh yeah, your fucking _left eye is missing!_ What you need to do is calm down and-" Takagani suddenly stopped speaking as Alron held up a small, glinting object. "What is that?"

"What are you, daft? It's a key!"

"I can see that, but why are you showing it to me?"

"Because with this we can get the Noah! We can get Linali!"

"Woah, woah, slow down. What the hell are you talking about? Are you trying to tell me that that key you're holding is going to magically teleport the Noah here?"

"No no no!" Alron vehemently shook his head.

"So then it will take us to them?"

"Yes! All we have to do is use it on a door, and it will take us straight to them…I think."

"Alron, listen to yourself. You don't even know if what you're saying is true, which it most likely is not. I understand how badly you want to save Linali, but there are some things which cannot be helped."

"Here, I'll show you!" Alron said harshly. He stormed to the nearest door, inserted the key into the lock and wrenched the door open. On the other side was a basic room, complete with bunk and dresser. "The hell?"

Takagani shook his head. "I told you, Alron. C'mon, let's go find the others." He turned and began to walk away when he heard the door shut and the key slide out. He breathed a small sigh of relief; it looked as if he had managed to convince Alron to forgo this foolish action. That's when he heard the key slide back into the lock, and _turn_ with a sharp click. He spun around, mouth already opened to further dissuade Alron, only to stumble back in surprise, blinking his eyes as a blinding light streamed into the hallway from the open door. "W-w-w-what is t-this?"

Alron was staring wide-eyed into the light, completely oblivious to how bright it was. He looked over at Takagani with a small smile on his face. He murmured a quiet "I told you so" before stepping forward and through the entrance.

Takagani stood still for a moment, not knowing whether he should follow and help his friend, or seek aid from Reika and the senior exorcists. "Fuck," he breathed quietly as he too walked through the door.

* * *

The door flew open, banging against the wall with a loud crack. The senior exorcists and Reika all looked up from where they were bent over a table. Leslie stood panting in the doorway.

Lavi moved forward, his face full of worry as he asked, "Leslie, what's wrong?"

"It's A-Alron," she gasped. "H-He's gone after them. Along w-with Takagani."

"Shit. What's the one thing I told him not to do dammit! He can't do anything for Christ's sake!"

"He had some sort of key."

Lavi froze. "He had a what?"

"A key, I don't know where he got it, but he used it on a door, and there was this blinding light, and he stepped through and-and-"

"Leslie!" Kanda suddenly barked at her. Everyone looked at him in surprise. Had Kanda really just used someone's name? Not 'you' or 'idiot' or 'woman' or some other degrading insult, but someone's actual name? He walked forward and stood in front of her, his cold eyes boring into hers. "What was the first thing I taught you?"

"S-Stay calm in all s-situations."

"And what are you doing now?"

"N-not staying calm."

"Exactly." He did not say anything else, just continued to stand there and stare at her. Leslie's breathing gradually slowed, and her shaking ceased.

Once he was sure that she was back to normal, Kanda tilted his head to Lavi. "Leslie," Lavi said, "tell us what happened." Leslie explained how she had tailed Alron, and caught up to him during his argument with Takagani. How she had watched from around a corner as he opened the door and went in, with Takagani following after a few moments' hesitation. Lavi sword loudly when she had finished. He turned to Reika. "Reika-san, I hope you can hold down the fort while we're gone. We need to go and get Alron and maybe even Linali back if we can."

"I'm coming with you," he replied, stern voice leaving no room for arguments.

Lavi nodded, "Fine." He glanced back at Leslie. "Lead us to the door Leslie, and be quick about it, we have a couple exorcists and a finder to save."

* * *

"I-I don't know what you mean." She tried to back up further, but the railing halted her progress.

"You know damn well what we mean," Alron spat harshly.

"Calm down, Alron. Linali, you can't very well be in love with two men at once. You can't give your heart to two people at once, it won't work like that, it _can't_ work like that." Damn Allen and his ever-steady voice.

"Linali," her eyes swung back to Alron as he spoke, "you need to make a decision here and now. Whichever you choose will be the one that stays with you."

"What about the other?"

"The other? You mean the one you don't select?" She nodded numbly. "Well, he'll…"

"Disappear," Allen added helpfully from behind.

"Ah, thank you. That was the word I was looking for. Yes," he said, turning his gaze back to Linali, "he will disappear, which is rather why we'd like to know which you want."

"You-you can't just force this on me! You can't just make me choose a person as if they were an object, especially when it's between you two! I love you both, alright? I can't make a decision between you."

"I'm sorry, Linali, but that won't work." Allen this time.

"What do you mean?"

Alron chuckled bitterly. "You see, Linali, if you don't pick either of us, if you try and say that you can't, that you _won't_, then you'll lose both of us, and you'll be alone."

* * *

"Road."

Said girl looked up from where she was leaning over the motionless body of Linali. "What do you want Tyki? Can't you see that I'm having fun here?"

He looked at her with a slightly annoyed expression on his face. "That's just it. Be sure not to break her. The Earl wants her alive and sane, for whatever reason."

"Oh don't worry, I won't break her again. I've already done that once. No, I'm saving her to break _someone else_."

* * *

"Takagani, which way is Linali?" Alron shouted as he once again swung his scythe through the Akuma rushing them.

"Left!" he replied.

Alron ducked an attack, destroying the Akuma with a counter as he did so. He then spun through two more before hurrying off down the corridor Takagani had indicated, with the finder following close behind. "Dammit, I didn't think there would be this many of them!"

"We walked right into their base, what did you expect?"

Alron grunted as he cut down a Level 2. "I expected some, but not this many. At this rate we'll never get to Linali."

"She's close by. Just up two corridor lengths and then off to the right."

"How do you know this?"

"I'm a finder, remember? I make a living out of finding things. A captured exorcist is nothing compared to Innocence."

Alron smiled grimly. _Just a little more. Just hold on a little more Linali.

* * *

  
_

"Choose, Linali."

"I can't!'

"What did we say about that? You're not allowed to do that, less you wanna lose us both."

"Stop it, please!"

"We can't."

"You two aren't who you say you are. If you were truly who you claim to be, you wouldn't be doing this to me."

"Forgive us Linali." Allen again. He was less outspoken about all of this then Alron. "This hurts us, truly it does. Not only for what we are doing to you, but also because this could be it for us. I have already experienced that once, I do not want to again."

"He's right, Linali. But no matter how much this hurts _any_ of us, you need to make a decision."

"I-I-"

"Hurry, Linali. Time is running out."

* * *

They burst through the door without an ounce of caution. Alron charged straight up to the nearest opponent and decapitated it. He spun and took out three more with a single swing. He turned around, expecting a block an attack by the Akuma behind him, but he met no resistance.

Instead, there stood Tyki and Road, though technically Road was floating, on _an umbrella_. She lazily blew a bubble as she stared at Alron.

After several moments of silence in which no one moved, she spoke up, "So, you actually came, did you?" She smiled. "I knew you would. Anything for your precious Linali, right?"

"Shut the fuck up!"

"Ooh, temper temper. By the way, how's your eye?"

She was taunting him, trying to make him angry. And it was working.

"I said SHUT UP!!"

"Alron, calm down. She's just trying to make you riled."

"Oh, what's this, boy? You brought a friend? And a finder? My, my, what a surprise. Perhaps I should play with him?" Tyki's hand began to glow. Takagani gulped and took a step backward.

"Stop playing games. Where is she?" Road pointed behind him. He turned, and saw Linali chained to a wall, head drooped and hair covering her face.. He started to move, but before he could take a step an Akuma lanced out, forcing him to guard against the attack. The force from the blow sent him skidding backward. "What the fuck!"

"I never said I'd let you near her, did I, Alron?" Road tsked. "No, I only showed you where she was." She gently flew up and over to Linali on her umbrella. She hovered in front of her and leaned forward, touching her forehead to Linali's. "Now, let's play a game shall we? We'll see how long you can last, physically _and_ mentally."

"What are you talking about?"

"Ready? Go."

Alron opened his mouth to once again yell angrily at Road, but his words were stopped by the sudden swarm of Akuma rushing him. He took three blows at once on his scythe and was sent flying across the room. He slammed into the wall, creating a large cloud of dust and debris. Takagani quickly ran to him, kneeling by his side and helping him stand.

"Alron, you can't take all of these things, we should pull back."

"Like hell! We've come this far, and Linali's right there! I'm not going back now!"

"Alron, we _can't_-" Takagani's sentence ended in a sharp intake of breath as blood splattered outward.

Alron's eye widened. "Takagani? Takagani!" The finder slumped over, a candle stake buried in his back. Alron looked up, even more hatred burning in his stomach then was there before. "ROAD!!"

She smiled sadistically, and the pupils in her eyes disappeared. "Trial one, the death of a friend."

Alron screamed, a horrendous sound that wrenched apart the air. He leaped up and tore across the room destroying anything foolish enough to get in his way. When he neared Road and Linali though, Tyki suddenly appeared in front of him. "Outta my way," Alron yelled, swinging his scythe. Tyki didn't dodge it though, like Alron had expected. No, he held up his hand, and a glowing shield shaped like a four-pointed star appeared on his forearm. Alron's Innocence hit it and rebounded, throwing him off balance. Tyki then slammed the shield into his chest knocking him clear across the room. Alron's head cracked off the ground when he landed. He tried to stand, but his vision blurred and his head swam, causing him to fall back down. His legs had suddenly lost all strength. _Shit…shit._

"Trial two, bodily harm," Road's voice sounded from the other side of the chamber. A Level 2 Akuma stepped forward, cracking his knuckles as he did so.

"I've been waiting for this all daaaay!" it cried.

_Move. Move dammit!_ But Alron's body would not respond. He had taken too much damage. A sense of helplessness enveloped him. He couldn't do a thing, he was going to die right here! He hadn't been able to save Linali and Takagani had died for nothing. The Level 2 reached out his hand as he moved even closer. It was getting nearer and nearer. Suddenly it struck Alron that it was almost like that hand that was out to grab him in his dreams. He chuckled emptily. _So is that what it meant then? That this is how I would die?_

Suddenly, when the hand was no more than a foot from Alron's face, he heard a scuffling, followed closely but the sound of slightly impaired running feet. He looked up with his one eye as best he could. There was Takagani, running toward him as fast he was able to, blood spurting from the wound in his back. _Ta…Takagani? What are you…doing?_ Alron's answer came shortly after this thought, as the finder launched himself in front of Alron. He glanced back over his shoulder, brown eyes catching Alron's silver one for half a second before the Level 2 grabbed him and lifted him up.

Nothing seemed to happen for a second, but then Alron saw a change. Takagani's skin began to darken and grow taught. Cracks began to form as the hue approached black. And gradually, but getting faster every second, Takagani began to crumple in on himself. The air smelt of burnt flesh. Takagani looked at Alron once more, this time with black eyes though. "Al…ron…" The name ghosted his lips before he disappeared, turned to dust on the wind.

Alron lay there, completely stunned. Takagani had sacrificed himself for his sake. Takagani was gone.

_Takagani…_

For the second time that day, Alron wailed horrible, tears streaming down half his face. He pulled himself to his feet, fighting past the shaking of his legs and the blood pouring down the side of his face. The Akuma turned his attention back to Alron now, lashing out violently just as he got to his feet.

Alron managed to move to the side and swung forward clumsily with his scythe. However, the Akuma easily evaded. The creature struck a counter attack while Alron was still swinging. Only one of its fingertips hit Alron, but it was sharp and the swing carried Alron's whole arm into it, resulting in a large gash that stretched from the back of Alron's left hand all the way to his shoulder. He stumbled back, the pain jolting him even further. It was nothing compared to what happened next though. His arm darkened. _Oh shit._ The cracks began to appear, and Alron screamed with pain. It hurt an unbelievable amount, as if someone was lancing his arm with a hot poker and grinding it around. He watched in horror as his arm crumbled away right in front of him. He fell to knees, utterly defeated. His innocence deactivated, turning into a normal wooden staff.

Seeing this, Road smiled and motioned away the Level 2. "We're not done yet Alron. We've brought you down physically, but remember what I said? Now its time to work on that cute little head of yours. Trial three, mental harm." She once again leaned into Linali, getting right into her ear. "Choose, Linali. Time is up."

* * *

"Choose, Linali. Time is up."

"I-"

"No. No more excuses, and no more running away. The decision must be made now. It's either Allen or I."

"I can't do this!"

"Yes you can, you must," Allen said.

"You're telling me to kill one of you, how can you ask me to do that?"

"Because we must, Linali. We've already told you this. This hurts us. We both love you, but only one of us can have you, and you can only have one of us. No, enough," he (Allen) said when he saw Linali's mouth open to say something, "either you decide right now or we're both leaving. And this time we won't be back…" he added in a quiet voice.

"Please, Linali. Choose."

"I…I choose…"

* * *

"…Allen. I choose Allen." Her voice was clear and loud, despite the fact that she was unconscious. Her words were faulty and unsure, but that didn't lessen the impact they had on Alron. _She…she chooses Allen? What is she talking about?_ But he knew even as he asked himself that question the answer was already there. He already knew it. He already knew that Linali had just picked Allen over him. His heart was suddenly torn in two, and the pain was unbearable. The woman he loved, who he thought had loved him, the woman he had come so far for, fought so many enemies for, made so many sacrifices for, had just rejected him. A great void opened up inside of him. Everything in the world suddenly didn't matter at all. It would be better to die right here then for him to live on like this.

But things got worse.

"Wake up, Linali," Road said.

And indeed the woman's eyes fluttered open. He lifted her head and looked around groggily. "Wh…what? Where am I?" She looked at him. "A-Allen?" She was still unaware and confused, nothing was making sense.

"Trial four, _severe_ mental harm." A candle stake appeared, floating in front of Linali with its tip pointed directly at her throat.

"N…no."

Road cackled. "This is the woman who just destroyed you, Alron, and you're telling me not to harm her? What? You still love her. Well…" she smiled again, "that _is_ the point of trial four." The stake plunged forward.

And the doors burst open. Something small flew at an impossible speed, knocking aside the stake just as it was about to stab Linali. Said object then pulled a graceful loop, returning to the owner's outstretched hand.

"Looks like we arrived just in time."

It was Lavi and the others. The one who had controlled the small object, which turned out to be a stone cylinder, was Reika. His Innocence was already activated, the other cylinders around his waist glowing with the same eerie light.

"Go, Akuma," Tyki said. The Akuma obeyed, rushing forward to assault the new arrivals.

They were destroyed.

Kanda slashed anything that so much as twitched. Lavi was right behind him, pounding out a path of dead Akuma, Krory was lancing his way through the Akuma, literally ripping holes in them with his bare hands. Reika's cylinders shot in all directions, devastating several foes at once. Miranda and Leslie stayed in back. Leslie was firing with both pistols at anytime she had an opening. Until she saw Alron, and then she was by his side in an instant.

"Alron!" she gasped when she saw exactly what type of state he was in. He had a large gash on his head, and it was bleeding profusely, not only this, his left arm was now missing. No blood came from the stump, but that didn't make the injury any less horrifying. The worst part of everything though, was Alron's eye. It was dead, like he had giving up living. "Alron…what did they do to you?"

"Tch, pesky exorcists," Road pouted. "I'll just have to finish this now then. She turned back to Linali. "I'm sorry Linali, but it looks as if our fun has to end." She created another wickedly sharp candle. "Good-bye, you were a fun play toy."

"Road! The Earl wants her _alive_!" Tyki spoke up.

"I'm not going to kill her. Just maim her." She started stabbing the stake down again.

"NO!" the cry was deafening, especially to Leslie, who had been right next to the person who issued it, and it froze Road's arm where it was. Alron struggled to his feet, grabbed his Innocence and began to stumble across the battlefield, completely ignoring the fight going on around him. Leslie started after him, but became engaged with several Akuma, preventing her from moving any further.

"You can still move, boy?" Tyki was suddenly beside him. "I'm impressed, but unfortunately, you stop here." He reached out his hand, aiming for Alron's heart. Alron brought up his Innocence, defending his chest as best he could. "You know, boy," Tyki said as his hand closed around the wooden shaft, "this works just as well." He hand glowed brightly for a second before the staff shattered, sending millions of pieces everywhere.

Alron's eye widened._ My…innocence. How…did he?_ Alron slumped to the ground again. He couldn't go on. He was exhausted, broken, through. Tyki was reaching for his heart again, but he didn't care. Someone did though, as Tyki suddenly brought up his shield again, defending against a vicious assault. Leslie was charging, both guns blazing.

"You stay the fuck away from him!"

"Leslie," Lavi called out, "grab Alron! We'll get Linali, and then we need to get the hell out of here." She nodded, though Lavi didn't see it. He was already on his way to Linali. He swung his hammer at Road forcing her to dodge away. He then quickly smashed through the chains holding up Linali, who was still delirious.

"Allen…where's Allen?" she whispered over and over. Lavi hefted her on his shoulder.

"Everyone, quickly!" All the exorcists formed up. Leslie was the last to back into the formation, Alron slumped across her back. He looked up, and upon seeing Linali he whispered her name quietly.

She looked at him with bleary eyes before asking in a timid voice, "Allen?" Suddenly, with those words, something clicked inside of Alron's head. It was like someone had suddenly blown up a dam holding back a river. Memories, images, feelings, everything that comprised a human being flooded into his mind. It was too much. He cried out as his body began to glow. His appearance started to change. The color was gradually bleached from his hair, leaving it bone white. The skin around his left eye began to morph and move. The broken pieces of the Innocence, sitting so far away on the floor, rose into the air, becoming luminescent as they did so. They flew to him, and spiraled downward to him. The glow surrounding Alron grew more intense.

"What the hell is wrong with Alron?!" Leslie cried.

"It doesn't matter, we can worry about it later. We're going!" Lavi called. "Hi Ba-"

"Ho ho ho, going? Going where, my cute little exorcists?" Shivers shot up Lavi's spine. _No, that's impossible._ He turned around slowly, dreading what his eyes would show him. And there it was. A massive figure, with an ungainly smile that was impossibly huge. Eyes hidden behind spectacles, the body wrapped in a huge trench coat, pointed ears poking out underneath the brim of the top hat.

The Millennium Earl.

Lavi chuckled half-heartedly, "Aren't you supposed to be dead?"

"Oh my, so rude!" He moved closer, and Alron's glow grew even brighter, he was now essentially a ball of light. "Last time we met was when I fought Allen Walker."

"A-And he k-killed you," Miranda stuttered out.

"Killed me? Ho ho ho, that is amusing. I cannot be so easily killed. No, he only injured me, and it took me three years to recover. I hear he's passed away now, so sorry." The Earl tilted his head and clasped his hands on his chest as he said this, which just added to the sickness of the comment. "Now, I must ask you to surrender those exorcists you're holding."

"_Exorcists_? I thought you only wanted Linali?" Tyki questioned.

"I did, but look at the way he's glowing. I'm intrigued." Nothing changed in his appearance as he said this, but the air suddenly grew much colder and more constricting.

"You can go to hell, Earl, you know very well we'll never give them up."

"So be it." He vanished, appearing behind them, already swinging his giant sword. They didn't have time to react. "Then die." Alron's brilliance suddenly flared up even brighter, washing out everything. Nothing could be seen. However, everyone heard something shift, and the distinct scream of metal on metal tore across the air.

* * *

He was floating in nothing. Complete blankness, nothing but white stretching on for infinity. It was comfortable here. No constant battles. No physical pain. No mental anguish. Nothing. He could finally rest, finally return to where he belonged. He had gone longer than he should have, kept alive to sustain a soul whose work was not finished. But he was done now. He had completed his duty, and he could finally go to sleep. As he closed his eyes one final time, he heard a gentle voice whisper from all around.

"Thank you, Alron. Sleep well."

* * *

The light was gradually fading, and everyone was beginning to blink. They were surprised. They thought the Earl had been going to kill them, so why were they still alive?

It was Linali who noticed first. The light had cleared her head enough to remember what was going on. What she saw though just put her right back into a confused state of mind. Her brain couldn't take it anymore, and began to shut down. As blackness closed in, she realized that what she was seeing couldn't be real. She could have sworn that she saw another sword blocking the Earl's. One that looked exactly the same, only with the colors reversed. A blade of pure white. _Impossible_. Then her head dropped. She was out again.

Everyone else saw him seconds later. Standing tall, gigantic blade holding back the Earl. White hair and cloak stirring in an unseen wind. The scar of the left side of his face livid against his skin after three years of non-existence. Cogs were rotating in front of a fully formed left eye. The only difference was that his hair was now long, and his eyes were silver rather than their old blue.

"It…it can't be…" was the only thing Lavi could say when he finally regained use of his voice.

"Che."

"Good to see you too, Kanda, Lavi."

"Ho ho ho, you've returned, once again. Will this play of ours never end, you silly pierrot?" He pulled back his blade, before turning and walking to where Road and Tyki stood. "We're leaving."

"Earl? Are you serious? I mean, he's back, shouldn't we do something?"

"No no, Tyki-pon. It's more interesting like this."

"Earl's right, Tyki. Just leave him be." Road was smiling. She turned and blew a kiss to a particular exorcist.

They vanished, but the Earl's voice sounded from overhead, "We shall meet again. Until then, good evening…"

…Allen Walker."

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**A/N:** Well, guys, that's it. the epilouge is the only thing left, and i'll attempt to have that up by the end of next weekend, i'd like to thank you all for sticking with me for so long and for putting up with the horrendously long update periods. for that i apologize.

when i post the epilouge, i'll be making final thank yous and such and also a lot of things that might not have been clear will be made so, so be sure to stick around for just a bit longer.

please, its the final actual chapter, so let me know what you think, review

until next time,

darkmyyst


	15. Epilouge:Twist of Prophecy

Well, um, yeah...hi guys

i'm sorry, really really really sorry. i meant to get it up so much sooner, but i got really busy, and my life kinda went downhill for a bit

just pleeeeeeeeeeeeease forgive me.

but anyway, this is it guys, so enjoy...

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Epilouge: Twist of Prophecy

She awoke slowly, blinking her eyes drowsily as consciousness returned. Where was she? She couldn't remember a thing. She sat up, holding a hand to her head as she did so. She felt terrible. Her head was hurting, and so was the rest of her body. Her throat was dry.

A gentle humming filled the room, almost lulling her back to sleep. She looked around groggily, seeing blurred color that as she blinked slowly swam into focus. A white room. A window on the wall above her bed. A counter along one wall that had items sitting on top of it in an orderly fashion, from syringes to bottles of medicine. A medical room. She sighed. She hated these places, they gave her the creeps. They also reminded her that she had once again come close to death, something she did not like to recall.

Linali heard breathing beside her, and turned to see a figure lying in the bed beside hers. He was tall, and the white streak in his hair told Linali it was Krory. His breathing was deep and steady, and his eyes were tightly shut. Beyond him was another occupied bed. Miranda lay in this one. As Linali watched she turned over in her sleep, mumbling something into her pillow as she did so. Linali giggled softly before sliding her legs out from underneath the blanket. Her bare feet touched the floor, sending small shivers up her spine. She was still fully dressed, minus her Dark Boots, which she discovered in a corner off to the side. She decided for the moment though to leave her feet bare, she didn't often get to walk around without her Innocence on.

She strolled over to the window and leaned against the seal. She stared out at the vast expanse of field and trees that extended out from the bottom of the headquarters tower. The sun was setting, throwing orange and golden light across everything. Linali thought. She tried to recall what had put her here, what had happened. Slowly, things began to come back. Her conversation with Alron and Takagani. The subsequent confession in the hallway. The explosion. Then there was a significant gap in her memory.

The next thing she remembered was…a mansion? A party? After that…Allen, Alron, asking her to choose between them. She shuddered at that memory. Who had she chosen? She could not remember. As she raised a hand to her face, she suddenly heard steps outside the door followed by the door opening. She did not bother turning around, she knew exactly who it would be. Three more sets of footsteps accompanied the first. _Ah…Lavi, Kanda, and Alron._

And she remembered. She has chosen Allen. She had selected him over Alron. How could she face Alron again, knowing in her heart that she would never be able to love him? How? She was going to have to break his heart, right here and in front of everyone. Another broken memory surfaced, the last thing she remembered seeing. A gigantic white blade. But who was she fooling? She must have been delusional at that point. That blade could not have existed. Allen was dead, long dead, and he would not be coming back, no matter how many times she called his name or wished differently.

A pair of arms wrapped themselves around her waist, surprisingly not accompanied by a desperate wailing and the wetness of tears. That was strange for Komui. _Maybe he grew up a bit in the time I was gone._ Then Linali chuckled at the thought. It was ridiculous. Komui, grow up? The world would end first. Still though, his lack of overemotionalness sort of worried her.

"Nii-san?" she questioned, her voice cracking slightly from lack of use. She reached up an arm to wrap it around behind his neck. "Is something wrong Nii-san?" Her hand touched hair and she froze. It was not Komui's hair. His hair was coarse and rough. This hair, this hair was soft and fine, and slid between her fingers like silk. Who the hell was holding her?

"Nothing's wrong with me, Linali," Komui's voice sounded. From behind whoever was holding her.

"Nii-san…" she breathed. She felt nervous.

"Again with the Nii-san, Linali?" the person holding her spoke, she could feel his chest rumbling as he did. "I'm not sure if I should be honored or saddened by the fact that you mistake me for your older brother." And then he chuckled.

Linali's breath stopped, and her head began to swim. She knew that voice. That laugh. They were sounds that she had not heard for three years. Sounds that she thought she was never going to hear again. The white sword flashed through her head. But no, that was _impossible_…wasn't it?

She turned slowly, afraid and yet exhilarated of what she would see. The first thing she saw was the white hair, what she had touched before. Then the flash of a silver eye. Then she saw his whole face. Full and complete. And _his_. Not Alron's, but his. The scar ran down the length the left side. His eyes were changed, from blue to silver, but that didn't matter. It was him, it was Allen. _Her_ Allen. She was stunned for a second, completely unsure of what to do. Suddenly a feral instinct took hold of her, and she threw her arms around Allen's neck and crashed her lips against his.

She kissed him with so much force and passion that she literally forced him backward into the wall. Her mouth opened and so did his, and their tongues began to duel furiously. _He is back, he is back, he is back!_ The thought kept resounding in her head. Her whole body was on fire and she reveled in the feeling. Three years without him, three years of torture, and now he was back, finally here, with her, the way it should be.

A small cough from behind them broke the trance that had fallen over them. They jumped apart, panting for breath and faces flushed red. Komui stood before them, arms crossed and foot tapping at an alarming rate on the floor. He was glaring at them.

"S-Sorry Nii-san. I-I just…" Linali stuttered.

Komui held up a hand. "This time there's no need for an explanation. We're all just _overjoyed_ at Allen's return." Allen could tell that there was a veiled threat behind that statement. "Regardless," Komui continued, "he has indeed returned to us, whether by miracle or otherwise, we don't know."

"Well, actually, Komui-san," Allen said. Linali loved hearing his voice again. She sidled up against him and his arms automatically close around her waist. She purred with happiness, ignoring the warning glare from Komui. "I was going to explain that, now that all of our companions are awake." Linali looked up, it was true. Krory and Miranda were both up, Lavi was located on Miranda's bed, holding her tightly as she cried tears of joy, and Kanda stood, bristling, in the corner. Leslie stumbled over to where they were. She had been in another bed on the far side of the room. Linali had not noticed her before. She was bleary-eyed and looked confused.

"Wh-where's A-Alron?" she asked hesitantly, locking eyes with Allen.

"He's gone, Leslie," Allen said gently.

Leslie stood there for a second, seemingly deaf to the words that Allen had spoken, and then she collapsed to the floor. "What do you mean he's…gone?"

"He's gone, and I'm afraid he's not going to be coming back." He looked around at everyone. "I'll explain everything." He took a deep breath before continuing, "When I fought the Earl and I…"died," I didn't truly die. My Innocence saved my life…again. It took my soul, since it was bonded with it so tightly, and wrapped it within itself, keeping it safe and secure. Thus I was still alive, while my body remained dead. My Innocence broke apart after I was buried, forming the fog that hung around my grave. Now, here is where things get confusing, so just hear me out and please don't interrupt. The bombing run that Alron was caught in happened not long after this. Now, Leslie, this is going to come as a surprise, and it may be a bit hard to accept, but Alron _died_ that day. He didn't live through that bombing run, he was supposed to be dead. His time was done, but God had different plans, apparently. He was kept alive, and my Innocence found him, and chose him. Bit by bit, over three years Crowned Clown slowly transferred itself to Alron, along with my soul. It formed an incomplete Innocence for him, the scythe. Do you understand what I'm saying? Alron was kept alive only to be a vessel for my soul to return, because my work was not complete, I wasn't done here. It's why he had a blue eye, and why his appearance began changing after he arrived here, because I was getting stronger day by day, and my time for resurfacing was getting closer. Finally, just yesterday, it happened. It was your voice," he said as he leaned down and nuzzled Linali, "that brought me back. You called me back from the void, from where I was. At that point, I took over completely, and gave Alron the rest he needed and deserved. I put his soul where it should be. Of course, my curse and my Innocence came back with me, the spots for both vacated by enemies, though I can't help but believe the attacks were guided by something. I know all of this may be hard to accept, but its true, all of it. I fought the Earl, and technically i died, but at the same time i lived. All of it was a twist of prophecy."

"Does…does that mean everything he ever lived, everything he ever did, was just a lie?" Leslie choked out.

Allen disengaged himself from Linali and moved to Leslie. He crouched down and rested a hand on her shoulder. She looked up at him, and he saw the desperation in her eyes, the pain. She was suffering. "That's not what it means at all, Leslie. Everything he did he lived through, it was him. It was not a lie. It wasn't useless, he gave _me _memories that I wouldn't have had otherwise." Leslie's eyes widened slightly. "Yes, I have Alron's memories. Every part of his life after his "death" I remember. Every moment that he spent…that _I_ spent with you, I remember." He hugged her, tightly. She numbly wrapped her arms around him too, but her heart was not in it. After a few moments she released him and stood shakily to her feet.

"I-I'm gonna…just go ahead a-and uh…take a walk…" With that she stepped slowly from the room, trying to avoid as much eye contact as possible. There was a few seconds of silence after she left.

Komui cleared his throat before speaking, "Well then, Allen, we have many things to discuss about your return and the continuation of your duties as an exorcist." He smiled slightly at Allen's crestfallen expression. "However, maybe that can wait a few days? You've just arrived back from the dead, so you should probably rest up."

Allen smiled and bowed briefly, "Thank you, sir."

Komui returned the bow before turning and walking to the exit. "Krory, Miranda, Lavi, and Kanda, please come with me. I wish to debrief you on this mission, and seeing as how Alron is nowhere to be found, Leslie is sorting things out, and my cute little Linali-chan is recovering from her injuries, you four are my only options." He left the room, and the exorcists followed, but not before they each left Allen with a hug or a slap on the back (Lavi) to welcome him back, with the exception of Kanda, who only glared coldly and left the room with a "che" that was just a bit louder than the occasion called for.

When they were finally left alone, Allen and Linali released a collective sigh. She turned into him, wrapping her arms around his back once more. She held him as tight as she could. "I'm never going to let you go again," she whispered into his chest.

"I'm never going to leave you alone again," he replied gently as he leaned down and placed a kiss on the top of her head. She turned up and placed her lips over his again, with much less force this time. They broke the kiss and Linali smiled again and snuggled into his chest. She sighed contentedly.

Allen chuckled, "So, Miss Lee, when do you think you'll be discharged from the medical ward?"

"Hmm…I have a sneaking suspicion that I can check out at anytime I want, darling. Shall we go now?"

"And if I said yes? What would we do once we do leave?"

"Oh, I'm sure we could think of something…" She said, winking at him.

* * *

Linali opened her eyes slowly as the early morning sunlight streamed through the window. Damn, she had forgotten to close the blinds last night. She shifted around a bit, mentally preparing herself to lift herself out of bed and close the blinds. But something stopped her. Through the haze of sleepiness, she realized that she was not cold. It was a surprise. Linali had woken up shivering every morning for the past three years, no matter how many blankets she had piled on her bed.

But now she was warm, cozy, snuggled amidst a ball of blankets and a pair of arms. She rolled over and stared at Allen's sleeping face. He was back. She was still finding it hard to believe. She reached out and touched his face. Yes, he was solid. Yes, he was real. And yes, he was here.

"I love you, Allen," she breathed tenderly to him. She pushed herself against him tighter, deciding to leave the open blinds for another time. She drifted back to sleep, with the knowledge that she would never awake cold again, as long as he was here.

As the last conscious thoughts were swept from her mind by sleep, she heard him speak, with just as much love as she had.

"I love you too, Linali."

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**A/N:** Alright guys that's it, i know i suck at endings, but please, i would like everyone to review this chapter, even if its just to let me know you read it. I'm not sure yet about a sequel yet, i'll decide that in a bit i guess.

Thank you to everyone who red this story, who bore with my horrendously long update periods and gave me words of support and always encouraged me. Thank you to all my fans, i would never have gotten the whole way through it without you guys, hell, i wouldn't have even written it without you guys.

Special thanks:

**-Skyblue305** and **mangafreak7793** - yeah, i didn't forget you guys ;) my first reviewers, thank you two so much, you kept me going back when this story was still young

-**Astaline Nihtingale- **you have reviewed for every chapter of mine every since you jumped on with my story, and you have always been so enthusiastic and supporting toward my story, i can't thank you enough :)

-**addenza- **you as well have reviewed for every chapter since you joined, and i truly thank you. both you and astaline really helped me to drag myself to the computer and update during those long stretches, thaaaaank yoooou

-**every single other reviewer**- thank you guys so much for letting me know what you thought of the story. reviews were what i thrived on, so thank you all for making this story something worth writing

All in all guys, its been a fun ride. like i said, i might do a sequel, but that's undecided thus far. i hope you enjoyed the epilouge, and the story as a whole. let me know what you guys think, review ^_^

until next time guys,

darkmyyst


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